


I killed you. Can I get a kiss now?

by StarShootingBird



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Developing Relationship, Other, charisk
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-18
Updated: 2018-07-09
Packaged: 2018-07-15 21:10:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 169,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7238626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarShootingBird/pseuds/StarShootingBird
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chara woke up, not in their room, but on a bed of golden flowers down in the Pit. There's a human child sitting next to them, so this obviously could only mean one thing: Human invasion. So, they'll just murder the child, go home, make sure their family is okay, and help the monsters drive out the invaders. It's not like they woke up years in the future where they've been dead the whole time, right? [Charisk]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> **Hey, first fic in AO3. This ought to be interesting.**  
> 
> **Got the idea from a tumblr post... somewhere. There's way too many Charisk posts in tumblr, it's impossible to keep track all of them (not that I'm complaining).**
> 
> **I'm not entirely sure where I'm going with this, but I had some suggestions from FFN so far. We'll see how it goes. Meanwhile, I hope you all like it.**

Chara woke from their sleep in an abrupt start, snapping their eyes wide the moment they were awake, then screwing them shut when they were assaulted by the brightness of daylight above.

It was... strange. Despite having a full night of dreamless sleep, their entire body felt fatigued, laden with weights that could not be seen. Their joints creaked like an old wooden boards being lightly stepped on as they stretched and moved. It was obvious that they haven't had a proper rest, and it's been a while since they hadn't; since they've began living with the Dreemurrs to be precise.

There was once a time when this was the norm for them, this feeling of insomnia, the constant lethargy that lingered in the back of their mind every moment of the day. It took them months before they could let themselves go enough to get a full night's sleep, and it was only after countless nights of crying and consolation from their new family that they've achieved it in the end. So why was it back now, when everything was finally starting to look up?

Having lost their bedsheets, Chara found that they were too wired from their experience to continue sleeping. They stood up to a sitting position, and swung their leg around to the edge of the bed.

They then stumbled a bit when their legs didn't find the edge of their bed, but a hard solid ground underneath instead.

Chara looked down at their bed to find that what they have been lying on wasn't a bed at all, but a patch of golden flowers that was growing on a mound of soft brown soil.

 _What?_ They quizzed, their mind unable to process the new information. They briefly wondered if they were still half asleep and were perceiving things in an odd manner, but how would one mistaken empty air with solid ground? They were definitely not on their bed. In fact, it was quite clear now that they weren't even in their room anymore.

"Chara?" An unfamiliar voice said from behind them.

Chara's arms swung back in a wide arc, and struck whoever was behind them with a powerful backhand. The being behind them yelped in both surprise and pain, and they distinctly heard them fall to the ground with a loud grunt.

Not wasting the opportunity, Chara used the momentum of their attack to spin around in place and leapt on top of their assailant. Luckily for them, the assailant was no larger than themselves, and had fallen face first to the ground, leaving Chara free to secure them. They sat on their lower back, twisted one of their arms, and placed a warning hand around their neck.

Caught, the assailant didn't struggle for long. They only twisted their body this way and that until they realised Chara had them in a secure hold, and they gave up trying to escape completely. Still caught in their adrenaline filled haze, Chara tried to identify the assailant with the numerous monsters they had had the pleasure to meet in the Underground.

The assailant was a child. Or at least according to the common monster knowledge they were a child. Wearing striped shirt was apparently a dead give away in this strange world, and Chara briefly worried that they may have gone too far against a kid. They quickly shook the thought away however when they remembered that, whoever this child was, they had infiltrated to the royal house and had kidnapped the child of a monarch, adopted as they may be.

The mop of dark brown fur growing on the child's head was long and silky, much like their own. If Chara had to name it, it looked a lot like human hair. Was it a mane? The child also had very human like arms. Was the child one of the Aaron clan's?

A quick glance behind them told Chara that, no, the child wasn't one of the Aarons. Aarons were mermens with horse heads, and this creature had two very distinct legs, and even from behind, Chara could tell that their head wasn't even remotely shaped like a horse. Wearing a blue top, pants and a pair of Adidas shoes, the child looked distinctly like a...

Something cold gripped Chara's heart, and they whipped their head around to look down at the child's foot with dangerously large eyes.

There, on the child's feet were a perfectly new pair of Adidas running shoes.

Of course, it wasn't entirely unusual to find human made clothes and technology in the Underground, but they always came from the garbage dump where careless humans came to dispose their garbage without repercussions. Everything monsters salvaged from there were at least five years old, worn with use and often in several pieces. There was absolutely no way that any monster could have gotten their hands on a pair of such a big brand shoes in such a good quality.

Chara whipped their head back to their captive and used their hand to twist their head to the side.

A twinkling brown eye came into view, and Chara almost lost their grip in shock, the cold chill gripping their heart intensifying until they felt numb.

They began looking around the room they were in, and found that it was no room at all, but a large cavern that didn't seem to have been occupied by anything besides molds and vegetation for years. There was only two exits from the cavern, one being the narrow path that could be seen in one corner of the oddly square shaped cave, and the other was high up in the ceiling, a gaping hole at the top of the cavern that provided a small window to the sky above.

It was a rare sight, and there was still one place in all of Underground that had such view.

Chara was back in the Pit. The one place that humans could enter the Underground from.

Horrid images of the Dreemurrs, surrounded by cruel humans, getting torn to pieces, and vanishing into dust, filled their mind.

"Mother?! Father?! Asriel?!" Chara yelled into the dark, hoping desperately for their family to respond.

But, despite their cries, nobody came.

They tried again, louder this time, using all the air in their lungs to call out to each of the Dreemurrs, hoping to reach them, wherever they were. Yet still, there was nothing.

Just before their third attempt, Chara choked themselves to stop, and peered down at the child, the _human,_ below them, their breath trembling.

The child had relaxed their limbs some time ago, trying to garner as much comfort they could scrap in their position. They couldn't even see their captor with their face kissing the ground, but for some reason, they didn't seem frightened at all. In fact, the human was calm, like they were perfectly find with their position, like they knew that they were going to be captured and it was all part of some grand plan of theirs.

Their confidence terrified Chara.

"Who are you?" They growled into the human's ear, twisting their arm further at the same time.

The human grunted in pain only for a moment before they gave Chara a reassuring smile.

"I-It's okay, Chara. I'm not here to hurt you." They stuttered in a soft, almost friendly tone.

Alarm bells rang deafeningly throughout Chara's mind.

"Who are you?!" They yelled in panic, their breath becoming quicker and more shallow by the second "How do you know that name?!"

It was impossible. The human had called them Chara, a name that they had given themselves after they had reached Underground. It made no sense that the child would know that name. No human could possibly know that name.

_So how did this kid know to call me that?_

"Y-you told me. Before. It's a long story." The human explained in a hurry.

The answer didn't satisfy Chara at all.

With the hand around the kid's neck, they lifted their head a touch and slammed them hard back to the ground. The resulting grunt wasn't nearly as satisfying as they had hoped.

"Do you think this is a joke?! Have you any idea whom you are dealing with?" They hissed, but all the child did was groan in pain. Catching themselves and their temper, Chara breathed deeply, leaned in close and tried again. "Where are the others?"

"Wh… what others?" The human stammered out, and Chara scoffed.

"Do not think me for a fool, _child._ You couldn't have possibly brought me here all the way from New Home. You aren't here alone. Where are the other humans? Why are you here?"

"I-I think there's a bit of misunderstandi-" Midway through their word Chara tugged on the human's twisted arm, earning them an ear piercing cry as the child's arm was nearly pulled from their socket.

"Listen here you little shit." Chara hissed into the whimpering child's ear. "Do not even think of pulling that 'I'm just a kid' crap with me. I don't care how small you are or how cute your voice sounds. If you don't give me a straight answer now, I am going to _kill_ you."

The child was suddenly silent for the longest moment, their body still as rock. When they finally opened their mouth, the words that came out of their mouth was probably the last thing that Chara thought they would say.

"You… you think I sound cute?"

Chara blinked, speechless.

Without a word, they gave a sharp yank at the child's arm, resulting in a loud, wet crack and a pop.

The sound was quickly accompanied by a gut wrenching scream.

Chara stood up, leaving the child to curl up on the floor, still screaming as they clutched at their now dislocated shoulder.

Chara brushed their hair away from their face, which had become a sweaty mopping mess in their adrenaline fueled rage, and let out a loud, but short huff. They then took a deep breath, and placed a calming palm over their forehead.

As quickly as they were up, they crouched back down on the ground, kneeling next to the softly crying human. With a gentle hand, they swept their dark brown hair away from their face, revealing a pair of tearfilled, bloodshot eyes that peered at them in fear.

"Oh dear, are you alright? Perhaps I have been too impatient." Chara spoke calmly, bright red orbs wide and unblinking. "I don't know where you grew up, but it seems you are having some difficulty grasping the situation you are in. Perhaps, a better demonstration is in order. This, I hope, will put things into perspective."

With a slow, deliberate motion, Chara reached out, and placed a hand on the child's shaking chest.

For a brief moment, their hand began glowing in a feint red glow, and in a blink of an eye sunk through the fabric of the blue sweater and into the human's chest.

The human gasped, gaping at the arm that was suddenly embedded wrist-deep in their body. Chara could feel the wave of chill washing over the human, felt it through the arm which connected them.

"Wha…?" The human gulped as they looked back into Chara's blood red eyes, but a distinct wiggle inside their body gave them pause.

"Ah, do not speak. I have only recently learned this skill. You do not want me to mess it up now."

The human didn't respond, but Chara wouldn't have cared either way. In a slow deliberate motion, they pulled their hand out, all the while watching intently at the frozen, almost hypnotised expression on the human's face.

When their hand finally retracted fully, a small red heart was in their magic encased grasp, and for a moment, they couldn't help staring in wonder at how small and delicate the child's soul was. How fragile it looked.

They looked back down at the soul's owner and found that they now had their undivided attention. Just as they were hoping for.

"Ah, you are paying attention then. Good. Do we finally have an understanding dear?" They asked with a kind smile, and held the soul up so that it could be seen better.

Again, the human didn't respond, and merely gaped at their soul with wide, tearstained eyes.

"Oh this?" Chara began, gesturing at the soul. "Why, this is your soul, child. The very culmination of your being. It is your entire life, held in a tiny, delicate encasing. One little slip..." They tightened their grip around the soul, just a little bit, and was delighted to hear the human's breath choke as though there was something wrapping tight around their neck. "... and oops, you're dead."

With a choked gasp, the human tried to speak out, "C...chara, please-"

"Shut up." Chara squeezed, all humour evaporating from their face. The child whimpered in both pain and fear. "We are long way away from the castle. How many of you are there?"

"There… There aren't anyone else. It's just me."

"Lies." Chara dug their nail into the soul, making the human moan. "Why are you here? Is this an attack? Have the humans finally decided to finish the job and kill the monster kind for good?"

"No. I would never-" Their words were replaced by screams of agony.

"Answer my question!"

"I-I-I'm telling you the t-truth, Chara! Please, don't do this."

Chara's grip became trembling, their pleasant faux smile all but gone, pair of blood red orbs flashing with rage. "Stop calling me that! How do you know that name!?"

The human gasped in short, uneven breaths, their life trickling away every second their soul was in Chara's hand. They looked pleadingly into the glowing red eyes, tears welling up once again until they began dripping drop by drop.

With trembling arms they reached up towards Chara, and Chara, though wary of them, knelt down and allowed the human to reach them. They had expected them to retaliate, to try and snatch their soul back with their whimpy arm, and was preparing to pull away just far enough so that it was hair's breath out of their reach. However, to their surprise, the human didn't reach for the soul. Instead, they placed their hand on Chara's cheek, gentle and soft, caressing them in a way no one but Toriel had done all their life.

"I… I just want to help you." They choked. "That's all I want."

Chara's red stared into their deep brown and saw the fear, the desperation behind them. They were telling the truth, or at least they were about wanting to help them. But there was something else there as well, something deeper, something that said the child knew more than they let on. The human had yet to reveal any information to them. They were still avoiding telling the truth.

Chara had to commend their bravery. For such a little kid, they had remained strong against pain many adults would have caved at, and held onto their secrets.

But that meant very little to them in the end. In fact, it solidified that they wouldn't talk.

The human was useless to them.

The grip around the soul became tighter, compressing until it became crushing. The child's eyes became impossibly wide.

"I do not need any help from a human, child."

Chara crushed their hand into a tight fist, and felt the soul within crack like a glass.

The child gasped, then their body fell limp.

And just like that, the world around them became black.

* * *

_It's going to be okay._

Chara woke with an abrupt start, then blinked at the blinding light assaulting them from above.

Such a lucid dream they had had. For a moment they question their decision to eat the plate full of snail pie Toriel cooked for dinner. Even if they were starting to like the taste of the gooey creatures, it appeared their stomach was not yet strong enough to withstand them in large quantity. Perhaps they could try the stir fry next time. It would no doubt make Toriel happy.

Wordlessly, they swung their legs around to the edge of their bed, ready to start the day as they questioned whether Asriel was awake yet.

They then frowned when their legs were met with a solid dirt ground once again.

"Please don't do that again."

Chara swung their arm back in an arc, and felt their backhand be grabbed by a pair of child like hands. They immediately pulled back, spun around, and leapt away from their 'bed'. A familiar sight greeted them: a human child next to the patch of golden flower growing in the middle of a cavern just below the Pit. They were watching them, not a single bit of malice coming off their subdued form.

Their very much alive form.

"I-I know you're confused, but you have to believe me when I say I'm not here to hu-"

A fist struck them across their face, and the child fell flat on their back with a yelp. Chara stared at their knuckles with curious eyes.

_Ah, so this is not a dream._

They leapted and sat themselves on the child's hips. Then, with a glowing hand, they reached into the human's chest and ripped out their soul once more, not minding the protests coming off of the child below. The protests died when they gave a tight squeeze of the little red heart anyhow, it wasn't that big of a deal.

What _was_ a big deal was the soul itself: the shimmering, perfectly unblemished soul.

It was the same, meekly thing that glowed in bright red before they had crushed it to dust.

"P… please…"

Chara didn't even spare them a glance before they slammed the soul down on to the ground next to them, shattering it flat against their palm and the dirt.

The light in the human's frightened eyes dimmed, and the world turned black once more.

* * *

_You don't have to be scared._

Chara woke with an abrupt start, and jumped out of their flower bed in a single hop. Without pause they kicked their leg out in an arc, but to their mild surprise, only struck the thin air.

Wordlessly, they landed their feet back on the ground. The human wasn't where they had been before. They were a few steps away, still close, but just out of reach of Chara's attack. They were learning. That and the fact that their eyes were much warier than they had been the previous two times, told Chara that what had happened before, did in fact happen.

They had killed the human.

Twice.

And then they came back.

"What is the meaning of this?" Chara quizzed, their neutral expression hiding the storm that was raging inside their mind.

"I know you're scared, but you don't have to be. I'm a friend. I'm here to help."

"I'm not afraid of you." Chara scoffed, but it was a lie. They didn't know how they have gotten here. They didn't know where their families were. A new human was here, and there may possibly be more. What would they do to the monsters, they wondered. A pair of Whimsalot that were supposed to be on guard duty tonight, had the humans done something to them? The thought made Chara's blood boil as well as terrify them.

"Good. Because I'm a friend." The child repeated calmly, and Chara assumed they didn't understand how creepy that sounded coming from a complete stranger. "I didn't want to get killed again, you know? It… doesn't feel too good."

They looked down at the palm of their hand that crushed the child's soul prior, and could still feel the tiny red heart shattering like a thin slice of candy in their grasp. They turned back to the human quizzically.

"How did you do it?" They asked. "That was no illusion. Humans haven't tapped into their magical potentials in decades. I fear that you may have drugged me, but the experience was far too clear for it to be so."

"It wasn't anything. You did kill me. We just came back afterwards." The child explained, like they were explaining to a caveman how a damn faucet worked. It was pissing Chara off to no end.

"If you are going to lie to me, child, please at least _try_ to sound plausible?" They growled through their teeth.

"I'm not lying, Char-"

The child's words were cut off when they were, like before, struck from the side by Chara's fist. Unprepared, they fell flat on their front once more, and again, Chara didn't miss the opportunity to secure them on the ground by placing a foot on their back and pressing it down with a little more force than necessary.

"If you do remember what had happened before, you would recall that I have told you twice not to call me that, _human._ It seems you are not very _smart_. In fact, you are quite _dumb_." They spat, crushing their foot harder at the end of each sentence.

That was when they heard something that chilled their blood and froze their limbs in their place.

_Please, you don't have to do this. We're in this together._

Chara's face blanched, their eyes widening at the human's voice echoing through their mind. Their first instinct was to look around, to find the source of the noise, praying that what they had just heard wasn't what they thought they were. But alas, they could not find anyone else in the cavern, and if that was not enough, the voice echoed in their mind again.

_I'm down here._

Reluctantly, Chara peered down, and found the human calmly lying beneath their foot, their eyes closed with an almost serene smile on their rapidly bruising face.

 _See Chara? I don't want to hurt you. We're connected, see?_ The human's voice explained and Chara's insides dropped, leaving a cold, empty void that boomed through every inch of their being.

"W... we're..." They tried to speak, but found that they couldn't continue. Their throat had closed up as though a thick rope had tied around it. Trembling, they gulped and did their best to calm their drumming heart: They thought of New Home and the world they had gotten to know over the months, of the monsters they have met, and the innocence and kindness they all seem to inherently have. They thought of the Dreemurrs and the familial love that they had given them. They were the true bright spots in their short lived life, the first to show them the true meaning of love, and they drew strength from it, the strength to calm, the strength to not be afraid.

None of it worked.

Chara decided it was best not to speak, best not to think about this new revelation before they did what they were about to do.

They lifted their foot off the human, only to use it to deliver a swift kick to their side. With a pained yelp, the human rolled on to their back, and the moment they did, Chara swooped down and extracted their soul with their magic infused hand.

The human looked with frightened, but unwavering eyes. "I'll just come back. I always do."

 _You can't just keep coming back forever._ Chara thought to themselves.

_I have. And I will._

Chara didn't justify the comment with a response.

They dropped the soul on to the ground and stomped on it with their foot, shattering it instantly.

The squirming child let out a strangled gasp, then fell limp.

The world faded to black.

* * *

_Please, don't-_

They didn't roll out of the flower bed this time. Instead they reached out to the presence besides them, grabbed it by the hair and yanked them close. At the same instance, their other hand reached for their back, pulled out their father's dagger, and plunged it deep into their stomach.

Chara watched the shock in the child's face with a cold, unfeeling gaze.

The human slumped forward, their life trickling away in a deep red ooze. Chara shoved them so that they fell on their back with a heavy thud, the hilt of the knife protruding from their abdomen.

"Ch..Chara…" The human wheezed.

Chara got up, only to step over the human's body and sit on top of them. They grabbed the knife and pulled it out, making the child twitch in soundless torture. A thin line of red splash on their yellow-green sweater.

Without warning, they brought the knife down again.

Again.

And again.

Each time, they went for a different part of the torso: the stomach, the abdomen, the chest, but at the same time, they were careful not to touch the heart, or any of the other vitals that would have killed the human outright.

Lungs flooded with blood, all the child could do in response was choke and gurgle the thick red liquid every time the blade entered their system, killing them bit by bit.

After the fifth stab, clothes and face marred with trails of blood, Chara threw the knife aside and stood up. When they looked down at their work, they found the human still twitching, their foggy eyes still watching them intently as blood frothed from their mouth.

Chara snorted.

"Come back from _that,_ will you?" They growled, and began walking away to find their way back to the castle.

On their fourth step, the world faded to black.

* * *

_Had enough?_

Chara leapt out from their lying position to a stand with a single flip. They turned their head to the side and found the human standing at least three strides away from the flower bed, peering at them with a wary look.

The child appeared frightened, but who wouldn't be, in the face of their own murderer of four times over? It gave Chara comfort that despite their apparent immortality, they were still able to feel fear of pain and death. It was something Chara knew that they could use.

Behind the human, they saw their dagger, thrown far away from either of their reach. They smirked.

"Throwing my weapon will do you very little good. I never needed it before."

"I know you don't. But it'll make the experience lot less unpleasant." The child replied, their tone cold and clipped, very different from the warm, pleading ones they've used thus far. Chara couldn't blame them for it of course. After what they had just experience, anyone in their right mind would be a lot less happy.

"We shall see about that."

Chara dashed at the child at a blinding speed and swiped a glowing claw at their face, specifically at their eyes.

To their surprise however, the child ducked and dodged the attack with ease, even going far as to stare at their magic in wonder.

"Wow! Is that fire magic?" The human exclaimed at the white, ethereal glow burning around their hand. "I didn't know humans could do that. Did Toriel teach you?"

Chara scowled and tried to elbow them in the head, but again they side stepped the blow as well as the small ball of fire that burst out at the end of it.

"How do you know these things? How do you know Toriel?" Losing their patience, Chara roared and threw a wave of flames at the kid. It was never as complex or powerful as Toriel's or even Asriel's, and consumed a lot more energy than was safe, but it would have caught any other beings, human or monsters, by surprise. So it came as a complete shock to them when the child side stepped, almost danced through the flames with ease. They didn't get singed one bit.

"She's your mum right?" The child said, suddenly standing with their faces a nose width apart. "She's my mum too. Or she was. Or she _will_ be?"

"Speak normally you little crap!" Chara punched, and the human hopped back, narrowly dodging it.

"I would if I could. Timeline jumping doesn't make much sense in normal words."

Chara mustered up a strength to throw another fireball, but they had already exhausted their magic and the ball turned out to be below average which the human stepped out of the way easily.

When the attack dispersed into the air harmlessly, Chara doubled over, sweating and heaving for air as though they've ran through a marathon. They glared at the human who was watching them with an apologetic smile. There was a distinct reflection of sorrow in their thin brown orbs that Chara could not comprehend.

"I'm sorry I'm not making any sense, but a lot has happened since you've went to sleep." The child spoke solemnly.

"How much could have possibly happened in a span of few hours?" Chara huffed.

"It hasn't been a few hours, Chara. It's been years. Decades." They explained, their gaze hard. "You died. And you've just been brought back to life years after your death."

Chara scoffed. "If you're going to lie, dear, please try a little better than that."

"It's not a lie. Toriel will be so happy to see you."

Chara scowled again at the human's flippant use of their mother's name, but lacked the energy to do anything about it. They did, however, notice a gleam of something small and metallic in the corner of their eyes, just a few step away from their reach.

It was their dagger.

The human must have noticed it too, because for a moment, their eyes shifted towards whatever they were looking at, then came back to their once murderer, wide and round as saucers.

Chara used the moment of shock to get a head start towards the blade, and in less than a second, saw the human legging it for the blade as well. Unfortunately for the child, being closer to the dagger, as well as being a few inches taller than them, it was inevitable that Chara would have reached their goal first.

As soon as the dagger was back in their grasp, Chara swung it in a wide arc towards the direction the human was coming from. The blade whisked through the air with malice, but the human had stopped in their track a step or so away from its reach. They took immediate steps back, adding a little more distance between the two with a pale face.

Chara smirked at the expression, drawing power from the sense of dominance it and the blade in their hand gave them.

"Aww, why, is the child scared of the little dagger? Scared that you're gonna get stabbed again?" They mocked, cooing at the human as though they were speaking to a toddler.

"You try getting stabbed multiple times and see how much you like it." The human snapped, their wary gaze never leaving the blade. Chara giggled at their angry tone.

"Oh I'm sure it was quite unpleasant dear, but that's what little shits like you get for lying you see?" Chara took a step forward, and the human took one back.

"I wasn't lying. I haven't lied to you even once so far." The child growled, finally ripping their gaze away from the blade to glare at Chara.

"Another lie." Chara shrugged, then smiled gleefully as they thought of an idea. "Oh, I know. How about we play a game? Every time you lie to me, I get to stab you. Since we just started playing I'll start with five stabs."

"Five?!" The child yelled.

"Well, I stabbed you five times over to kill you last time. I've got to beat my own record."

The human shook their head in disbelief. "You… You're still the same. I don't know why I expected you would be a better person when you came back."

"Still sticking with the ' _you've been dead for decades'_ story? I won't count that one since you've used it before we started playing, but if you don't stop talking like you know me, I might just change my mind."

"I do know you Chara."

"And now it's six stabs. You know nothing about me, child."

"But I _do_." The human insisted. "We've traveled the Underground together before. We've talked. We were…" They paused, their expression scrunching up as they thought on their next word. "Friends?"

Chara rolled their eyes. Even without the questioning tone at the end, they could hear that "friend" wasn't exactly the term that the child wanted to use.

"Seven stabs. You've said I've just been resurrected, but now you're telling me that we've traveled together. Which one is it? Get your story straight, dear. It's getting hard to keep track."

"You weren't alive back then! You were this… ghost… thing that followed me around!"

"Pfft, really? So you're saying I've been haunting you after my death? You've got an excellent imagination. You should write a book." Chara mocked with a laugh. "It's eight stabs now, by the way."

"I know you're from Collingwood!"

In that moment, Chara's smile dropped like a brick, their eyes turning into ice as the name of their home town echoed throughout the cavern.

"... What did you just say?" Their words were clipped, so sharp and jagged that they could have murdered the human all over again by merely being spoken.

The human visibly flinched at it, but swallowed their fear and continued, determined. "You were born in a town called Collingwood, on November 30th, the last day of fall. You lived with your birth parents for the last twelve years of your life before you ran away and came to Mt Ebbot to… escape."

Chara's eyes gradually widened as they listed the facts out. They wanted to say something to stop them, but the child wasn't done yet.

"Your favourite food is chocolate." They went on. "You love to spend time reading fantasy in front of the fireplace on a cold night, and love to watch the royal guards training in the day. You received that dagger from dad, Asgore, for your first birthday in Underground. You started training with the royal guards after that." A small smile played on their lips. "Mum hated it, but she was supportive of it anyway because it made you happy. She's nice like that. It was the first time that you've realised that the Dreemurrs truly loved you, and you swore that as long as you were here, you would find a way to free them, all of the monsters, from the Underground."

Silence ensued after the human finally finished. Chara stared at them, their expression blank. Memories of recent past were flashing in their mind.

"How…?" They scowled. "How could you possibly know all that?"

"Because we've met before Chara. You told me these things." The child smiled.

_Lies. Nine stabs._

"I know you. I didn't lie."

 _All lies. Ten stabs. Kill them now!_ Chara flexed the blade in their grasp and was about to march, when the human's voice echoed back.

 _You don't have to._ They reassured. _I'm not here to hurt you. I want to be your friend. I know you don't want to, but it'll be better. We'll be happier. I promise._

The child sounded so certain, so sure. They were distinctively how Chara was _not_ feeling at the moment. Their grip around the blade tightened into a vice.

"... You know what?" They began, their voice low and dangerous. "Forget the game. I've decided I'm going to kill you. Right here, right now. And if you come back, I'll just kill you again, over and over, until you don't. How does that sound?"

They didn't even wait for an answer before they were lunging at the human, swinging their blade around like a person possessed. The first true swing at the human missed as the moment they were in reach, the human turned their tail and ran, heading deeper into the cavern without a single glance at their attacker.

"Running away won't solve anything dear!" Chara yelled almost in a sing-song voice that did nothing to hide the madness within.

Chara, being a few inch taller than the human, should have been able to catch up to them without much effort. But, the child was surprisingly agile, and just as when Chara thought they had them, the human would slip away either by pretending to go one way then kicking off into another, or simply moving around in an odd pattern that made them hard to target.

When this happened once, Chara was mad, and swung their blade extra hard the next time around.

When it happened twice, Chara calmed themselves somewhat and tried to be strategic.

When it happened three times, Chara lost their grip on rational thoughts and began raving like a lunatic as they chased the child down using both their knife and fire magic.

None of it helped though. Just as before, the child dodged away from the barrage of flames like it was their second nature.

If Chara had the time to think, they might have been impressed, even applauded the human's ability to dance around the magic with such grace. But right then at that moment, they couldn't have cared less if the human was dancing around flames or juggling eight knives with one hand. They just wanted them dead.

"Stop moving around you twitchy fuck!"

_If I do, will you stop trying to kill me?_

"NO!"

_Then I'm not gonna!_

Chara let out an animalistic roar laced with all of their hate and frustration.

The human turned a corner, and Chara followed suit, formulating their next course of actions to kill the child for good, but in that moment, they heard something that stopped their thoughts cold, something that stopped their heart for a moment and sent a wave of horror through their core.

"Why, greetings little one. It is unusual that we find your kind around... Oh? What are you doing?"

Time slowed as a stream of something flashed before Chara's eyes.

They were images, memories that they couldn't recollect ever experiencing. Their mother, Toriel, was kneeling on the ground, her brand new royal robes, strangely faded with age, torn and cut. She was hurt, badly, and if monsters had blood, Chara knew for sure that she would be covered in red right then.

She was saying something to them. The words weren't too clear, sounding foggy and muffled, but from her soft and gentle tone alone, Chara knew that she was trying to console them, even through the pain that was gripping her entire being.

And then she was gone. A dust in the wind. Her soul remained afterwards, but only for a moment, before that too shattered, and scattered away into the either.

Time resumed its normal pace far too quickly, as though it was trying to catch up on what it had lost, and Chara, their heart pounding with fear, barely had a moment to collect themselves before their legs launched into a panic driven sprint.

They turned the same corner that the human had turned... what was it? A second? A minute? An hour ago? They didn't remember how long they had been delayed by... whatever they had just experienced. And the thought that they might be too late made them move that much faster.

To their immense relief they found Toriel standing in the distance, alive, whole, and definitely not dying. She was standing next to the human child who was standing behind her and using her as a shield.

"Mother! Stay away from that child!" Chara yelled as they dashed forward.

They threw a curved fireball behind her, hoping to scare the child into running again, but the moment the flames came near, Toriel lifted her hand and dispersed the magic with her own. Chara cursed, but didn't dare speak it out loud in front of their mother.

"Mother, you mustn't protect that human!" They reiterated, stopping not a few strides away. "They are dangerous. They are not what they seem!"

"... Chara?" Toriel's voice was a whisper, full of disbelief, but Chara didn't pause to think why she was speaking in such way. They were more focused on their family's well being, as well as getting their mother away from the creepy human child.

"They've infiltrated the castle and kidnapped me. I don't know how they've managed such feat, but I suspect there are more than just one. Where are father and Asriel? Are they alright?" They asked with worry, and when Toriel didn't answer, their worry became mixed with confusion. Their mother was still, her posture rigid. She was staring at them with the oddest expression they've never seen before. "Mother?"

Toriel stepped back at the word as if stricken. She placed her hand over her heart, gripping it so tight, Chara could see the fabrics of her robe scrunching up. When she finally spoke, her voice was hoarse with unshed tears.

"No…" She choked. "No, please. Do not let me see this again, please."

She screwed her eyes shut, and dropped to her knees. Chara, confused, ran up to her in an instant, sparing the human only a short glare.

"Mother? Are you alright?" Chara asked, placing their hands on Toriel's shoulders in a reassuring grip.

Looking up, Toriel smiled a broken smile, and gazed at them with loving, yet regretful eyes. "Oh, my Chara. You were such a sweet child." She said. "I am sorry I failed you. I was not a good mother."

Chara frowned, lost. Their mother sounded so… sad. They've never heard her speak this way. "I… I don't understand."

_She thinks you're not real._

Chara whipped their head towards the human who was looking at Toriel solemnly.

 _Why would she think that?_ They asked, using their mind to communicate with the human for the first time. It was an odd concept, and it scared them to have their mind linked with another, but their concern for their family overrode their fear.

 _Because you've been dead for years._ The child replied simply.

Chara's first instinct was to scoff and berate the human for sticking to their lies even at a time such as this, but before they could speak back, an unbidden thought had occurred to them.

What if the human was telling the truth?

Chara blinked, then turned their attention back to their mother who had pulled them into a tight hug and was sobbing into their shoulder. Gently, they stepped out of the embrace, placed their hands on either side of Toriel's face and made her look at them.

Toriel's sob trailed off, and she blinked her eyes clear of tears. After a moment of staring, she frowned.

"Y… You…" She began, her voice shaking. "You are still here? I do not… understand. This is where the dream ends. This is when I wake up, and you and Asriel are gone."

Chara's heart dropped to the pool of their stomach. The human's words were rushing back to them, repeating over and over like a broken record from a bad dream.

_It hasn't been a few hours, Chara._

_You died._

_It's been years._

_You_ died _._

 _Decades_ …

_You DIED._

_You died. And you've just been brought back to life years after your death._

_Toriel will be so happy to see you._

She was happy to see them, Chara realised. But she was also sad, hurt, and confused like a lost child. _How ironic._

"Mother." Chara said again, their eyes glistening with tears, their voice filled with determination.

"Chara...?" Toriel whispered, her tone filled with tentative hope.

Swallowing, Chara gave an uneasy smile. "I'm… I'm here, mother."

Toriel stared, incredulous. "But... this is impossible. This cannot be... this..."

She wiped away her tears, very poorly, and when she looked at her child again, it was as though she was looking at them, truly looking at them, for the first time.

Without warning, she pulled Chara into another, near crushing, embrace. Chara didn't object, and hugged back, whispering soothing words to their mother as she wept once more.

At the corner of their eyes, they saw the human watching the pair, crying, yet at the same time smiling as though a great burden has been lifted from their heart. They were truly happy that Toriel had found their child again. Chara recalled their words, _"She's your mum right? She's my mum too."_

Chara would have been lying if they said they believed every word that the child had said to them, but it appeared that at least some of their words had been true. Unfortunately, rather than giving answers, that just raised even more questions, questions they wanted, needed, answers for.

 _And you will get them, in time._ The child said. _It'll be a long story though. I don't even know where to begin._

Chara glanced down at their crying mother, then, after a moment, looked back up at the human.

_What is your name, child? Let's start with that._

The smile on the child's face brightened to an impossible degree, and Chara gagged in disgust. They could hear the child giggle in their mind.

 _Hi there,_ they began then paused, and gestured at Chara to go on.

With a roll of their eyes, Chara answered back. _Greetings. I am Chara._

_Hi Chara. My name is Frisk. I'm so glad to finally meet you. I hope we can be friends._


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Hey folks. Thank you all so much for all the positive feedback. I'm a bit overwhelmed to be honest. I wasn't expecting this to go anywhere.**  
> 
> **And sorry for the delay. I took some time to plan out the future chapters and may have lost myself a bit. Don't like how this chapter turned out, but this is the 4th version I wrote, and I wasn't going to do a fifth one and delay myself for another week. Maybe the previous versions were the one to go with, but I'll never find out just moping around, sitting on my thumb.**
> 
> **Anyway, here's chapter 2!**
> 
> **WARNING: This chapter contains blood. Lots of it.**
> 
> * * *

Chara heard Toriel approach and suppressed the need to sigh. They supposed it was inevitable that they would be found eventually, but they had hoped that it would take their mother a bit longer. They weren't ready to talk to her just yet. They still wanted a bit more time to process. A bit more time alone.

They didn't bother acknowledging her, and instead chose to remain sitting silently by the balcony's edge, staring at the scenery of the capital in the distance, their blank canvas of a face revealing no emotion. Their mother's footsteps stopped besides them, the skirt of her robe fluttering in the gentle breeze.

"So this is where you have gone to." She said as she joined them sitting on the ledge, her voice soft and motherly.

Chara tried to keep their lips sealed, but their royal manners wouldn't allow them, and eventually they sighed. "How long have I been gone?"

"A bit over an hour, I believe." Toriel said after a bit of thought.

Chara frowned. They didn't realise they've been gone for so long.

"I made you worry." They murmured, peering down at themselves like a chidded child.

Toriel, however, shook her head. "Not at all. You are smart and strong. I knew you would not go anywhere where you would be harmed."

The compliment and the trust behind the words made Chara's heart flutter. The gentle smile she gave was so bright that they found themselves returning with one of their own without even trying.

"How are you feeling, dear?" Toriel asked, a weight lifting off her heart at the sight of Chara's bright expression. "You were... upset when you left."

Chara faltered a bit, their smile losing some of their genuinity. They gazed back at the dark, night-like scenery before them, solemn. "Which answer would you prefer?"

"The truth will do." Was the answer

_The truth, hah_. They scoffed. Externally, they shrugged. "If I were to grieve, I would be sixty years too late."

"It has not been so long for you however." Toriel reasoned, but they shook their head.

"It matters little. The world doesn't wait for those who are late. I must be the one to catch up."

Toriel's paw grasped their shoulder tight and supportive in a way only a mother was able to. "You have your whole life to catch up now. I am still in disbelief that I can say that, but it is true. You can afford to stop and grieve for your brother, my sweet."

Chara looked up at their mother to retort, and was immediately choked to silence when they were pinned by her reassuring gaze. A part of them, lost deep within the depths of their broken soul, begged for them to trust their mother, to lean in and allow her to comfort them in their time of surrows, but a larger part reminded them that they mustn't, that they must be independent.

_Do not be weak._ They reminded themselves. _You cannot afford to be weak. Only the strong will survive in the end._

They swallowed lump that had formed in their throat with some difficulty.

"Honestly, mother. You worry too much." They held their happy expression, as uneven and trembling as it was. "I am fine. I have always feared that I would lose you all one day. To see that I only had lost one is... not so bad."

They tried to look away the moment they finished, wanted to take the coward's way out, but Toriel's gaze had them rooted in place like a nail in a wall. The sight of sadness marring her features struck them like a physical blow, and made something thick and heavy, resonate from deep within.

Guilt.

They made their mother sad.

_Look at what you've done._

Their smile vanished, and they were finally able to turn their head away once more. Their heart pounded in their chest, making blood roar in their ear like a great torrent.

_Look at what you've done, you little whore._

"I-I'm sorry." They muttered hastily.

"It is alright, my child. I am not…" Toriel paused, petting her child on the head. "I merely wish for you to be honest with yourself."

Chara nodded, then let out a long, tired exhale. They thought back on everything they've learned today: their death, Asriel's passing, their parents' separation, and events that has happened afterwards.

_Sixty years..._

"I… I miss him." Their voice was almost a whisper, thick and hoarse.

"As do I." Toriel nodded sounding equally solemn.

"He shouldn't have taken me back. I told him how cruel humans can be." Chara hissed, their hands clenching into tight fists at the thought of humans of their home town attacking the passive Asriel. What was worse was that they knew whom the humans were personally, that they knew what face to put behind each hand that had killed their brother. They wished they could go find all of them and burn them, burn them all until they were all mere piles of white ash.

"Do not fault them, child." Toriel's gentle words sliced through their dark thoughts. "They were afraid, yet brave enough to fight an unknown. To… To avenge your death."

Chara nearly scoffed out loud. As if _they_ would do such a thing. 'Brave' was hardly the word that they would pick to describe half of those humans. And even if they were, it would be hard pill to swallow to believe that they fought Asriel to bring justice or something equally righteous. They just saw something for the first time, and did what humans did best: kill and destroy.

"I do not fault them, mother." Chara lied through their teeth, much for their mother's benefit. "A tragedy has occurred due to a series of well-meaned actions and unfortunate mistakes. A recurring pattern in many tales."

"But it does not make those tales any less tragic." Toriel replied, wrapping an arm around them and pulling them close. Chara didn't protest, and allowed their head to rest on their mother's chest. It was warm, comforting. Scores better than the cold numbness that filled them right then.

"How did you do it?" They asked after a moment of soundless peace.

"Do what, dear?" Toriel quizzed as she stroked Chara's hair.

Chara savoured the sensation of their mother's fur rubbing against them, her scent that seemed envelop their very being, the warmth that reminded them of all the love the Monsters have shown. When they closed their eyes, they found Asriel there beckoning them to come and play.

"Get past it." A stray tear escaped from the corner of their eye. "His… passing."

Toriel was silent, but her strokes never stopped. So Chara waited, giving her all the time in the world to find her answer.

"Time, my sweet." She said after a while. "I do not have any other answer than that."

* * *

#  Chapter 2 

The mother and child walked through the Ruins hand in hand, making their way back to the warmth of their home. The pair remained silent throughout their jouney, neither needing any words to enjoy each other's company. For Toriel, this seemingly eventless walk was a decade old dream come true. Simply holding the hand of her long dead child, there was nothing more she could have asked for in that moment. For Chara, it was only yesterday that they have walked through the royal garden with their mother, but seeing her so overjoyed by their mere presense, it was enough to leave them content. Besides, they quite liked the leisurely walks they had with her. It was tranquil, peaceful, something they have experienced so little of in the past. They would have agreed to it even if they knew the way around the Ruin on their own.

However, unlike their mother, the pleasantaries of each other's company wasn't the only thing on Chara's mind at the moment. As they studied at the endless purple walls that seemed to compose the entirity of the Ruins, their thoughts unwittingly drifted towards the human child, Frisk, who was apparently waiting patiently at home for their return.

It irked them somewhat, their mother being so trusting that she would invite a complete stranger to her home and let them stay there all by themselves. And with no supervision too. Chara might have commented on her senility were it not so terribly rude.

Perhaps it wouldn't have been so bad, had it been anyone else in the house, anyone else besides this... _insane_ child whose thought process Chara simply could not figure out. They still remembered the 'fight' they had back in the Pit. They remembered the child scream, cry and beg as they tortured them, beat them and murder them over and over. Memories of the red splashes staining their top still brought their heart beat to soar, fueled their adrenaline to a spike. They had done so many terrible thing to the child back then, and now they were providing them shelter?

Chara didn't know which was more insane: that, or the fact that the child so readily agreed to the idea, to stay under the same roof as their own murderer of four times over.

With their curious powers, Chara knew from the start that Frisk was a strange child, but their trip from the Pit over to Home proved that the human was beyond simply strange. The child was a complete lunatic. Not a few minutes after their trip to their mother's home began, nary a quarter of an hour after Chara had brutally murdered the kid, Frisk had the audacity to walk next to them on an equal pace, and try and sneakily hold their hand.

Chara was horrified at the gesture and shooed them away, making sure to not show their menacing glare to their mother, but a few minute later, the child tried again.

And again.

And again.

It was only after they threatened to burn them alive that Frisk finally stopped, but even then the child maintained their wide, happy grin, as though they knew all along what Chara's response would have been, and was doing it all on purpose anyway. And that's perhaps what worried Chara the most. Knowing what the child could do with their strange reset powers, that idea, that knowedge that this human, a complete stranger whom they've just met, knew everything about them, everything about everyone they knew and loved. So much power held by one so little, one so seemingly young and vulnerable. A demon in a sheep's clothing.

They knew from experience that humans were more complex with their feelings than monsters. It wasn't as simple as smiling when happy and crying when sad. Those who smile all the time were the ones in most pain. Those who smile at the face of their tormentor often had a knife hiding behind their back. And Chara worried that the child's nonchalance around them was precisely a case of this: They were biding their time, waiting for Chara to let their guard down, and once they do, they would strike, quick and merciless, just like all humans did.

It was a terrifying thought.

_Do not falter. Fear will leave you dead._ They told themselves. _Always stay alert._

They couldn't let their guard down, especially for their mother who seemed to trust the child for some odd reason. They had to remain vigillent, and protect their family through any means possible.

_Protect the people. Eradicate the enemy. Become strong._

"Chara?"

Chara jumped out of their thought and turned with a start. When they found their mother peering down at them with a bemused smile, they sighed, and flipped off the channel of magic flowing towards their hands.

"I see you are back to the land of the living." Toriel said, then giggled at her own joke.

"Mother, for goodness sake." Chara huffed, appearing annoyed, though the small tug of their lips said otherwise. "You will give your child a heart attack being so tactless."

"I am certain you will survive dear. Besides, I remember you have given me plenty of heart attacks already with your ceaseless antics." Toriel reminisced, then peered down at their child curiously. "A copper for your thought? You were quite engrossed in whatever you were thinking about."

Chara paused. "Oh, I was merely-" _thinking of brutally torturing a child_ "... thinking." They ended vaguely.

"Would I be correct in guessing that you were thinking of Frisk then?" Toriel asked, her tender smile already knowing.

Chara shook their head, chuckling dryly, unamused. "Honestly. You must get so tired being correct all the time."

"I cannot say I ever have." She giggled again, then continued to stroll forward. She added, after a pause. "You are wary of them."

It was a statement and they both knew it.

Chara sighed again.

"I am." They admitted, knowing there wouldn't be any use in lying. "Do you not find it strange? I, who have been dead for the past six decades, have returned from the dead with no explaination as to why. Not even Monsters with all our magic, could explain the phenomenon. And at the same time, a human enters our world, falling in the exact spot where I myself have fallen so long ago, in the same place that I was supposedly buried, just in time for my resurrection."

"An odd tale indeed." Toriel agreed. "But I do not think it is something to be so suspicious of. Does your opinion differ?"

_Yes._ They wanted to say, but they knew they couldn't explain their reasons without mentioning the child's strange powers, and in turn, their murderous actions. "I... simply have this queer feeling about them." They said instead. "They seem to know a lot about the Underworld. Too much for someone who'd only recently fallen down."

"Ah, so it is not just I who have noticed it then. The child did appear much too calm walking through the Ruins. Why, I might even go as far as to say that they seem like they've been through here before."

"Hmph, it does appear so, does it not?" Chara snorted, though secretly they eyed their mother curiously..

"Yes. But I have not felt any ill intent from them either. I cannot explain it but… I get this odd sense of… familiarity when I am with the child. How strange… It is as though I have..."

Chara watch their mother's distant expression, one that made her look as though she was trying to remember something important.

" _She's your mum right? She's mine too."_

Chara felt a great sense of pride for their mother, for her maternal instinct so sharp that she could remember things from another timeline, even if they were mere hunches of a memory. She truly was a great mother.

_Much too good for a human like them._

Chara questioned, not for the first time, on why Frisk had returned to the Pit at all. From what brief conversation they had on the child's rewind ability, Frisk had traveled all the way to New Home at least once before, but rewound back due to reasons they didn't seem too keen on sharing.

Had they seen the barrier and found that they couldn't continue? Had they faced off their father? Had they realised that the King was too powerful and decided to come back to become stronger? Or perhaps to prey on a weaker monster to gain a soul from? It didn't sound like what the seemingly innocent child would do, but as they say: looks could be decieving. It was a statement especially true for a human.

There was no plausible reason for why Frisk would abandon everything they had achieved by making it to New Home, to abandon their mother of all people, and rewind back to this point in time. At least, no _good_ reasons anyway. There were still many terrible, bone-chilling reasons that Chara could think of on why the child had returned.

The monarch's fingers twitched with the need to act, their suspicions of the child greater than ever. Who were they? What did they want? Why were they here? They couldn't let them stay. Not in their mother's home, and certainly not in Underground. They were going to have to make them leave, and if Frisk didn't listen, they will make them wish they had.

"Oh dear goodness!"

Toriel's distressed cry brought Chara back to reality, and they turned to her, readying their magic for any possible signs of trouble. They found her, eyes wide with worry, hands clamped tight over her mouth. She was staring off far into the distance and they quickly followed her line of sight. Then their eyes widening at what they saw as well.

In the distance, in the room just beyond the doorless gateway ahead, was Frisk facing off with a large carrot creature that cackled like an old hag who drank one too many cups of hot tea. The two were a few meters apart, the carrot on the ground, its base half buried, and the child standing alert, back hunched and legs slightly apart. It was a stance Chara had seen a before. It was the child's 'battle stance'.

"Eat your greens!" The carrot creature suddenly shrieked into the air, then promptly fired off a rain of magic at the child, all in a shape of a carrot. (Because what else was it going to look like?)

There was an audible gasp from Toriel and she began hastily making her way towards the human child, clearly worried for their well being. Chara followed suit, but definitely not for the same reason. They didn't care that the child was being attack. In fact, not for the first time that day, Chara watched in amazement as Frisk dodged the hail of carrots as though it was their second nature. The carrots were firing off at an alarming rate, but the kid simply wobbled side to side, using as little movement as possible to avoid touching the magic bullets. When they did move further then a single step, they strode at a leisure speed, never exaggerating their movement to a degree where they would overcompensate and leave themselves vulnerable.

At a quick glance, the child could be easily mistaken as the one in trouble, but Chara knew better. If anything, the carrot was the one in danger from passing out from exhaustion. The amount of magic they were throwing at the child could not have been healthy for their reserves.

What was the child even doing here? Were they not supposed to be waiting quietly at home?

They eyed the human questioningly, trying to figure out their motives, but then almost stopped dead in their track when they saw what the child held in their hands.

A wooden stick.

Chara's heart rate soared in that moment, alarm bells blaring in their head.

_Shit,_ They cursed crudely, _where the hell did they get that?_

To any ordinary monster, a stick was a flimsy, pathetic excuse for a weapon, barely worth picking up lest they were looking to throw it in a bin. But in the hands of a human, the level of threat a stick provided could increase a hundredfold, if only one had the right knowledge and intent. The way Frisk was currently holding the stick by the base, as though it was a sword of some sort, it was dangerous. Chara hoped that they didn't know how to properly fight a monster, didn't know how to channel their emotions behind the swings, but knowing what the child could do, it would have been very likely that they did.

Suddenly, Frisk somersaulted forward, a wild movement compared to all the other, more conservative ones they'd been making so far. The child's arm stretched forward, swinging the wooden stick at the carrot like a hammer. It wasn't an erratic movement brought on by sheer coincidence. There was intent behind that swing, some purpose.

The stick hit the carrot on the head with a loud _thwack!_

The creature's face contorted into one of confusion, its magic attack vanished with a puff.

The child looked down at their work, and slowly began grinning.

Chara felt their heart stop at the sight, their world slowing to a stand still.

Images that they saw back in the Pit replayed in Chara's mind, the one where they watched their mother cut, hurt, and vanish into dust. It was irrational, they knew, but they could not help the way their heart hammered in their chest right then, the way their eyes sharpened and their ears became muffled.

_There it is._ Their heart said. _This is the truth. They will kill us without a second thought._

_How cruel. How unfair._

_Save them._

_You are their monarch. Save them!_

Chara took only a moment to gather themselves before jumping into action. Their hands immediately flared up with wild magic, their legs moving into a full sprint as they suddenly felt the need to reach the child as fast as they could. They tried to concentrate their flames into a ball, fighting against their rushing emotions that were throwing them off. Despite their efforts however, their magic crackled and swirled around as a puff of glowing cloud, shapeless and ill-defined.

They chanced a glance up and saw Frisk slammed the stick on the carrot's head again and again, their grin widening with each strike.

Each time the carrot creature let out a short, "Ack!" Clearly in pain, yet helpless to stop it.

_Save them! Why aren't you saving them?_

Chara stopped in place and drew all of their focus on to their hands, willing the wild magic fizzling about to calm. The cloud of ethereal energy began pulling together, gathering steadily into a white ball. But it was slow, much too slow to satisfy their adrenaline fuelled mind.

_Faster!_ They screamed. _You are failing!_

_Why can't you do anything right you filthy whore?!_

With a boom, the magic in their hand burst into the ether, their concentration shattered. Chara growled, almost roared, their frustration evident. They reached for their back, produced their dagger from its hiding place, then turned to the child with flashing eyes and began sprinting towards them, their murderous intent clear as day.

Unaware, the child swung the stick one last time, slamming down on the monster so hard, it's branches snapped off with a loud crack.

To Chara's horror, a crack appeared on the carrot's head, one that became larger and larger by the passing moment like a fissure.

A corner piece of the monster fell off, hitting the ground with a barely audible thud.

All party involved came to a stop. All shocked. All staring at the orange monster piece with a varying degree of horror. All except for the youngest member of the group, who smiled happily at their handy work.

They reached down for the piece, then quickly took a large bite out of it without a moment of hesitation. Chara didn't know what they were more horrified by: the fact that the child was eating a monster, or the fact that they were eating something they just picked up from the ground without even bothering to brush the dirt off.

The child chewed, tilting their head this way and that, savouring the taste. After a moment, they swallowed, ran their tongue inside their mouth for a bit, then beamed down at the monster.

The carrot monster, still missing a piece of their head, stared blankly, immobile, appearing almost dead. Then, without warning, they erupted into a joyous cackle. Chara's form stiffened at the crude noise, and turned at the carrot incredulously.

"Ate your greens! Ate your greens! Contains Vitamin A!" The monster shouted, spinning and hopping around in obvious glee. They were completely unaware of the monarch's tense stare. "Goodbye! Goodbye! And always eat your greens!"

Without a moment's wait, the carrot dug back into the earth and disappeared from sight, leaving not even an upturned dirt in its wake.

Silence ensued.

Chara blinked a few times, trying to rap their head around what had just occurred.

_Chara!_

They whipped their head back to the child, just in time to see them run towards them happily, the mutilated monster chunk still in their hands like it _hadn't_ just fallen off a living, breathing monster. When they reached the monarch, they offered it, like a damned gift.

_Wanna bite?_ They beamed.

Chara's hand immediately whipped out and slapped the piece out the child's grasp, stunning their smile away. Frisk looked up at them in surprise, as though they had not expected such a reaction, and while Chara was overjoyed that they managed to knock the simpering smile off the child, they couldn't help but wonder why they were surprised at all.

"Chara!" Toriel's horrified gasp echoed out, and before they knew it, she was kneeling next to them, examining Frisk's hand for injuries. Chara watched her, confused, but before they could ask, she turned to them with a stern look.

They flinched back. "M… mother?"

"I thought I had taught you better. Why did you do that?" She asked, her solid tone demanding an answer.

"I…" They stuttered, their head spinning. "Mother, that child just struck that creature and… _ate_ a piece of them! It's… ghastly! _Barbaric!_ How can you be so calm?"

Toriel blinked at their response, then sighed. "Oh, my sweet, you have it all wrong. That was a Vegetoid, a descendent of the Parsnicks."

Chara blinked.

"Parsnicks? The cook?" They asked, remembering the creepy Medusa's head creature that used to cook up an exquisite fried snake in the Royal kitchens.

"Yes. They merely wanted the child to have a healthy meal. The Vegetoids, they are happy to cook for everyone, as well as offer them a piece of themselves to eat."

Chara processed the information, then shook their head. "But… the stick. The child, they-"

"Attacked, yes." Toriel placed a calming hand on their shoulder. "I'm afraid Vegetoids can't simply detach a piece of them to offer right away. They need someone who's willing to take them off of them."

Chara was silent for the longest time, processing, trying to piece together their initial assumption of the child with the reality of the situation. They looked down at the child who was gazing up at them worriedly, as though concerned, and couldn't help but scoff. The child was concerned for them. _Them._ Their own killer and murderer.

_This child…_

"You… knew this?" They asked haltingly.

Frisk nodded with a wry smile, then added in their mind, _I like carrots._

Chara fell quiet again at the innocent comment. The adrenaline in their system flushing out of them like a low-tide.

"I… see." They gulped, then found their mother gazing expectantly at them. They turned back to the child with some reluctance, then after a long moment of consideration, began, "It appears that an apology is in order. I am… sorry for striking out as I did. It was... _wrong..._ and rude of me to do so."

They finished, then let out a breath they didn't know they were holding, feeling as though they had a teeth ripped out.

Frisk smiled at their words, and launched forward, their arms spreading wide, to hug them.

Chara lifted a warning hand almost immediately, throwing daggers with their wide, unblinking eyes. _Do not get cheeky with me._ They growled menacingly.

The child giggled and ran away, not the least bit frightened, off to hug their mother instead.

Chara wanted to stay suspicious of them, wanted to be angry, but strangely found that they couldn't. Frisk wouldn't have cared anyhow, all giddy and excited for their return, even as they were being lectured by their mother. Looking at the smiling child now, so incessantly bright and clingy, the whole idea that they could cause anyone harm seemed preposterous. It made them question their judgement.

_Humans can seem nice. But that's why they're so dangerous, is it not?_

They pondered on the thought, then nodded in agreement.

Yes. Humans were unpredictable. They killed in the name of love, hurt the ones they loved without fail. They held generosity in one hand while holding a knife in the other. They can have good intent and still end up hurt so many others in the process.

It didn't really matter if they were angry or not at the child. Fact dictated that humans were dangerous, and therefore, they no choice but to remain suspicious, remain vigilant.

_Watch the child. They are hiding something._

_Nothing that can harm anyone._ Frisk's voice echoed. They were smiling up at them again, albeit more solemnly than before.

Chara glared, but it didn't held the same intensity as it did before. They huffed in annoyance, and turned away, choosing to ignore the child instead.

Soon the trio left the Ruin as a group, silence their constant companion for the rest of the journey.

* * *

Not long after they arrived, Chara trudged into their room and closed the door behind them quickly, but also softly as to not make any loud noises to break the serene atmosphere their mother had built into the place. Toriel was now in the kitchen cooking them up a supper of what they could guess was a Butterscotch cinnamon pie, while the kid was simply left in the dining room, with Chara giving them a small warning to not to follow them inside the room lest they want to be horribly tortured and maimed again. The threat didn't seem to work too well, but Chara didn't expect it to. They were just hoping that it would temporarily stave the child off, even if only for a little while.

Alone, they walked up and dropped into the lone bed, face first, without a second thought. Enveloped in the pillow-y comfort, they clutched onto the bed sheet tight, and inhaled. The fabric smelled of dry wood and stale dust. It smelled nothing like _him_ , the scent obviously long lost over the decades.

_Asriel._ They wanted to call out. _I am troubled. Will you help me?_

The walls around them answered with their looming presence. Silent. Unmoving.

Chara knew that no one would come, yet felt their heart break a little at the result anyway.

_Sixty years._ They marvelled. _Has it truly been that long? Has he truly been gone for that long?_

It was difficult to comprehend. For them, it was only yesterday that they were playing with Asriel in the castle's hall. They were supposed to be training with their father on magic and battle tactics today, and then take a little excursion to a nearby town to buy some gift for the Grand-Froggit who was reaching his ninetieth. Afterwards, they were supposed to help their mother cook a snail quiche, and then prepare for a new day where Chara would finally be sparring with an actual rookie guards instead of just the trainees for the first time.

_Not anymore,_ they supposed. Now they were in the future, their people still stuck behind a barrier, the kingdom ruled by a lonely king without his queen or his heirs.

_How dreary._ Chara cursed. Wasn't the future supposed to be this bright, beautiful place where all the promises of today were fulfilled, and all the problems were in the past? They certainly didn't feel like it was. They felt distant from this world, detached. This was their home, yet they didn't feel like they were part of this place. It was all so different. So confusing.

Chara closed their eyes shut. If they concentrated hard enough, they could almost pretend that this was still a dream. There was no new human in their house. Mother was in the kitchen cooking breakfast, father out in the garden, and their brother was still here, jumping on this very bed, calling out for them, asking them to join him with his childish antics.

He always did that, they recalled, coaxing them to step out of the confines of their room and see the light outside. Some days it would be to help their father garden, other days to accompany mother to the cities, and some others, Asriel would just want to play. Never having had any friends of their own age to play with, he was always happy to do just about anything and everything with Chara. And while Chara was never one for such pointless activities, they always played along, happy to see their brother smile, that warm, dazzling smile that adorned his face whenever he called out to them.

They allowed themselves to drown in the memories, to scrape for the peace and tranquillity they so desperately needed.

_"Chara! Look, it's a snail patch. Let's take some home for mum!"_

_"Chara, dad's flower garden bloomed all at once. Come see, it's so beautiful!"_

_"Chara, I'm not a girl, stop putting flowers on my head!"_

_"Chara, I swear it's really good. I don't get why humans don't eat snails."_

_"Chara, you'll stay with me forever right?"_

_"Chara. I'm so sorry."_

_"Chara, our plan failed."_

" _Chara..."_

_Chara?_

Chara sprung up from the bed with a start, the memories of their past rushing away as fast as they came. With wide eyes, they studied their surroundings, and found the human before them in the room, watching them with worry. Chara blinked at their presence, then sighed, annoyed.

Of course the child wouldn't listen to their threat. The stubborn little shit was more suicidal than a depressed Whimsalot.

"Couldn't you have at least had the courtesy to knock on the door before you came in?" They spat with a scowl.

Frisk simpered annoyingly as always, and Chara suppressed a groan.

"Are you okay?" The child asked.

"But of course." They huffed. "I am peachy. Why wouldn't I be?"

"You don't feel okay." Frisk answered sadly.

Chara quirked a brow at their choice of words. "I don't _feel_ okay?" They repeated, and saw the human confirm with a nod.

"Yeah, it's our connection. It lets us feel each other's emotions when they're really strong. I felt something was borthing you, so I came in to check."

The information sunk in like thick tar, but when it finally did, they paled, and glowered at the child with murderous eyes. Frisk jumped back, raising a pair of nervous, but placating hands.

"B-but it's not like I can tell what you're feeling exactly. I just get a hunch that you're feeling good or bad. Nothing too specific. I swear." They quickly assured, though Chara now questioned whether the child only said it because they felt their fear through the connection.

_Or is the kid nice enough to just say it regardless?_

Chara scowled down at themselves. Why should they care if the child was nice or not? They didn't. No matter how benign their actions may seem, no matter how protective their mother seemed about Frisk, the fact of the matter was that the child was suspicious, and therefore possibly dangerous. They wanted them gone, needed them gone to think straight, if not out of the house, then at least out of the room.

"Well, as touching as this may be, there is nothing for you to be concerned about. I am merely tired." Chara explained, knowing that threats will do little good against Frisk, and hence forcing themselves to speak in a civilised manner instead. They glowered at them menacingly, willing them to go away without specifically saying, or thinking it.

Frisk, unfortunately, didn't take the hint. "I-Is there anything I can do to help?" They asked, eyes twinkling like an excited little pup.

"Very little. I simply wish to be left alone, if you don't mind." Chara waved them off, even as their other hand gripped tightly at the bed sheet.

"Can get you something something then? Maybe some tea? A book? How about a chocolate bar? I think there was a box of them in the fridge. Maybe we can make hot chocolate. Is that how it works?"

"No."

Frisk frowned. "Oh. Maybe I should ask mum to mak-"

" _NO_." Chara bit out through grit teeth, their rage barely contained, "I mean, there is nothing you can offer me. Be a dear, and _leave me alone_."

Frisk finally fell quiet, their happy expression falling bit by bit. Chara could practically see their proverbial dog ears drooping at the dismissal.

The child sagged their shoulder, obviously hurt, but much to Chara's chagrin, they did not leave the room.

"It'll be easier if you shared your grief with others." They whispered at the floor.

Chara whipped their head to glare at them, their red eyes flashing like lightning in the sky. The way the child sounded then, the small, wise, 'I-know-best' tone that carried their words, it made them sound like their mother, giving the impression that they knew more of the world than anyone. More than them.

It was insufferable. Unbearably annoying.

"Oh will it be now?" They spat in a mock surprise. "And for whom will it be easier I wonder? For me or for you?"

"For everyone." Frisk replied as though it was obvious. "You have people who care for you, Chara. They don't want to see you sad."

"Oh you'd know wouldn't you? Did you find out using your rewind powers? Such an irresponsible child, using your powers for your gain." Chara hissed. "Most people who cared for me are dead I believe. And if they are not, they have moved on. They do not need me to return to their lives only to burden them with my troubles. I have survived alone before, and I will survive again. The world does not wait for the weak. I will remain strong."

Chara finished, and expected the cold numbness to overtake them from the admission, just as it always did. But to their surprise, a great wave of emotion suddenly washed over their heart. It was sickly, so vast and unpleasant, they felt like they needed to run to their mother for support. It was something that they could not recall ever feeling before, and they didn't like it. They paused, confused.

"It doesn't have to be that way." Frisk said, their eyes filled with sorrow. Chara met their gaze with their own, and suddenly realised: this was the child that they were feeling, their connection. This was what Frisk felt as they watched them: Sad and pitying, as though Chara was a fragile porcelain doll. Like they were some common street rat begging for food. Some poor disease ridden urchin living out in the cold.

Chara remembered what their life on the surface was like. They remembered the looks people gave them, the busy passerby who was too self centered or had too much trouble on their own to look at them with anything but contempt and pity.

_You're a_ _trash._

_A freak._

_A whore._

_You ungrateful bitch._

_I should have killed you._

_I should have killed you when I had the chance._

Chara winced, and hurriedly blinked the voices away, but it was too late. Something cold exploded in their body, spreading through their limbs like an infection.

"Enough." They boomed in the best regal voice they could muster. "I've been tolerating your presence so far, but you've out-stayed your welcome. Leave."

Frisk was unfazed by the dismissal. "I'm not leaving you like this."

"Like what? At peace? Oh why, you are so very cruel." Chara mocked, putting their hands on their chest as though heart broken.

"I want to help, Chara. Please don't push me away. I want to help."

" _I can help."_

" _We want to help."_

" _I can help you, kid. Just close your eyes. It'll be over very soon."_

Chara hissed and slammed the base of their palm over their forehead.

" _Help?_ " They repeated, their voice rumbling like a beast in a cave. "You want to help me? Then please do me a favor and leave. Leave this house. Leave Underground and never come near me or my family again. That is how you can help."

Shocked brown eyes bore into Chara's, and began filling with tears.

"Why?" Frisk pleaded. "Why can't you trust me? I've never lied to you."

"Not yet." Chara leapted out of the bed, and began prowling towards Frisk in a predatory manner, their eyes glowing like magic fire. "But that little fact can change very quickly. You're a human, dear. Lying is in your blood. You may appear as a simple child, but I know you are more. You are dangerous, you and your powers to undo death itself."

Frisk shook their head vigorously. "I'm not dangerous. I'm not gonna hurt anyone."

"Not for a while, no." Chara agreed, their expression suddenly solemn, almost sad. And then it was gone, as quickly as it came. "But you will grow older, and with age will come that natural _human_ desires. Mother doesn't realise it, but I've seen it happen many times before. You will become greedy, self-important. You will start thinking you are better, superior to everyone around. And with your powers, the chance of that happening will be very high, don't you think?" A low chuckle escaped Chara's throat, sending an unearthly chill down Frisk's spine.

"You can get away with anything!" The monarch announced. "You can cheat. You can lie. You can steal. You can even kill. You can try a murder again and again until you get it right, make it a perfect crime no one can catch on. You can kill everyone who gets in your way. You can befriend whoever you like, make them like you so much, they think they're in love with you, do anything and everything you say. No one will stop you. No one will even think to stop you. No one will ever know."

Chara slid their palms onto the child's paling cheeks and gently lifted them up, making them look straight into their gleaming ruby eyes.

"Mother thinks you are good. In fact, you may well truly be good. But you will change. All humans do." Their grin was cold, their eyes frozen, and unfeeling like that of a dead fish. Frisk gulped, their throat tight. "You will start hurting others. You won't mean it. Oh no. Nobody ever means it at first. You'll be sorry for your actions, but only for a moment before you do it again and again. All without realising. And you'll be sorry for it again and again, until one day, you realise: You just don't care.

"People will see you and say, 'Oh that Frisk used to be such a good child, but they make so many mistakes these days and hurt their loved ones'. But it won't be a mistake by then would it? You'd have realised what you could get away with. You'd have realised that even if you hurt the ones you love, they'll forgive you in the end. So why stop? You won't. You'll never stop hurting them, the people you claim you 'love'. But even that'll be a lie in the end. Humans are pigs that consumes love and excretes hate, and I will die before I let them defile my people with their presence."

Chara's eyes were glowing, magic oozing out of their form like thick tar, reminding Frisk of their 'fight' back in the Pit. The human took a cautious step back, cold sweat starting to form on their forehead as they looked at the blank face of their tormentor. "Chara… Chara, listen to me. I'm not here to hurt anyone. I love the monsters, just like you. I'm a friend."

"That's what they all say at first. 'I'm a friend'..." Chara said, their voice as empty as their face. "And I must say that it is... shocking how humans never fail to disappoint."

"Not all humans are like that. I know you've been-"

"You know NOTHING!"

Frisk froze, their body ready to jump at the first sign of trouble, but Chara didn't move, even if the magic burning around their eyes steadily intensified. Frisk took a few deep breaths, counting the seconds as they stared terrified at the murderous monarch.

When it was clear that Chara wouldn't make any further move, Frisk spoke again, speaking rapidly as they knew the situation can change any second. "You don't trust me, I understand. But I can prove to you that I am. Please, just… just give me a chance."

Chara gaze was empty, their tone bitter, "I'm afraid I have given humans one too many chances already."

In somewhat of a deja vu, the monarch's hand shot out at Frisk's chest like a snake. Frisk didn't think the hand would reach them, but then in an instant, a orange aura molded around the hand, forming a makeshift blade that extended Chara's reach.

Instinctively, Frisk moved to the side. The blade touched them, but the magic merely slid past them harmlessly like a ghost.

The instant Frisk did so, however, another magic blade struck them in the forehead.

This time, the blade was blue.

They forced their body to freeze, bulging eyes fixed on Chara's grinning face.

"Ah, so you know of the 'blue-orange' rule then. But of course. You've been through Underground before. Many monsters utilise either one or both of the blue and orange magics, it makes sense that you'd have experience with them."

Chara took a step closer to Frisk without moving their hand. With the blue blade stuck in their head, Frisk could do nothing except hyperventilate as they watched the approaching monarch with fear stricken eyes.

"I'll tell you something special though. Monsters, even if they have the power to do so, don't have the heart to use both magic at the same time. It's just unfair you see? They don't think that it's proper. They are such… soft creatures." Chara said as they looked to the side, seeing something far away in their mind with eyes that twinkled with fondness and longing. When they gazed back at Frisk, all emotions had drained from them, leaving only a twisted, unfocused grin in it's place. "Glad I'm not a monster then, no?"

Chara's other hand, the one forming the orange blade, swiped across Frisk's face in a horizontal line. Right across their eyes.

Immobilised by the blue blade in their head, Frisk couldn't even hope to dodge the attack.

As Chara said, it was terribly unfair.

Scream ripped out of Frisk's throat in an instant, a horrid, blood curdling noise that conveyed nothing but pure, primal agony. Blood poured out of their scrunched shut eyes, streaming down their face like red tears.

Chara finally removed their blue blade with a smirk, and allowed Frisk to curl onto themselves, clutching their blood covered face with their hands. The screams continued, starting anew every time it seemed to end.

"Oh, you poor baby" Chara approached the screaming child in a calm, regal manner, and pulled them into a loving embrace. Blind and in pain, Frisk couldn't reject the gesture, and allowed themselves to be held in the arms of their tormentor.

Chara cradled the child, whispering reassuring words into their ears as softly and kindly as any mother would their own child, holding them close as their screams turned into a loud weeping sobs.

From the distance, out in the hallway, they heard loud thumping footsteps approach them at a hurried pace.

"Looks like mother will be here very soon." Chara cooed into the child's ear. "We can't have her see what happened now can we? Don't worry. I'll make sure she won't. And you'll have your sight back as well. It will all be over very soon."

Without their eyes, Frisk couldn't see the blade that pierced them. They certainly felt it however. Felt it right in their heart.

"But if you ever step into this room again after our return, know that I will do much, much worse to you than this. Heed my warning, child. Leave Underground while you can. We do not want you here."

The blade in their chest twisted, and the child felt their soul crack.

The world, for the fifth time that day, turned to a pitch black.

* * *

Chara blinked, then sighed in relief when they realised they were still in Asriel's room, though they were now sitting back on the bed as apposed to standing in the middle of it, cradling a bloodied human child. The stains on their clothes were gone as well, and their magic seemed to be back in full capacity.

_A successful return trip then._ They thought, then scrunched their brows when they realised something. _Why did we return to this point and not back at the Pit?_

"I made sure to save before I came to see you."

Chara whipped their head to the door in mild surprise, just in time to see Frisk closing it behind them. They hadn't expected the child to come back. Or at the very least, not so soon. Not after what they've just been through and not after the very specific threat they've made. The child was pale, a bead of sweat dripping down their forehead, their shoulder shaking, trembling ever so slightly. They were scared, terrified, Chara was sure, and yet they still stood up right, head held high, looking at their murderer with a determined frown. It was most impressive. Chara might have even applauded them, if they didn't think they were so stupid.

"Save?" Chara quizzed.

"It… means that I changed where I return to after I die." Frisk explained and Chara hummed in thought.

"So you can do this on your own free will? How frightening. Yet with such power, you are still a child, and a very stupid one if I may be so bold." They hopped off the bed, their hands crackling in blue and orange. They sauntered over to the child who stood with their back held firm. "I believe I've warned you what will happen if you ever appeared here again. Yet here we are. Dare I ask why?"

"You can't make me go away just by killing me a few times." Frisk claimed, looking every bit a wary animal ready to bolt at the first sign of danger.

"Can't I? I would love to put that to the test. You don't mind, I'm sure?"

Chara didn't wait for an answer before they leapt forward, swiping both magic blades at the same time. Having no options, Frisk leapt back, but even then, the tip of the blades cut a thin line on their neck which immediately began seeping red blood. They gripped at the bleeding wound, but didn't run either. They were braver than Chara gave credit for.

_Or are they just dumb?_

It didn't really matter, they supposed. Chara was going to make sure that the child either left on their free will or become a raving lunatic who would throw up in terror at the mere sight of them.

"Do you really want to do this again, dear? All you have to do is leave this place and never come back."

Frisk didn't answer.

"Hmph. Very well. Shall we take bets on how many times I'll kill you before we tire of this whole charade? I'm thinking five. Does that seem reasonable?"

A ball of fire forced Frisk to jump to the side, just in time for Chara's dagger to fly across the room and embedded itself into their chest. Chara tutted at the child whose shocked eyes matched the size of a gold ball.

"Oh dear. Truly? Five seem a ridiculously small number at this rate, no? I change my mind. Perhaps it should Ten. What do you think?"

Frisk fell to the ground in a heap.

The world around them started to shift, fading into pitch black.

Chara shrugged with a wide grin. "Oh well. I suppose we'll just have to find out first hand then."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Ideas that were abandoned for this chapter: Charisk Fluff, Charisk Kiss, Charisk Anything-Good.**  
> 
> **On that note, this story IS still a Charisk story.**
> 
> **Next up: Frisk has a REALLY bad time.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Hello there, thank you all so much for the comments and kudos. It's what encourages me to continue writing whenever I get that sense of self-doubt :D**
> 
> **Chapter freaking 3. I changed this chapter around so much I don't even know if it makes sense anymore. But whatever, I'm releasing it! I need to learn how to be happy with a chapter and just moving to the next instead of working on it for all eternity.**
> 
> **... And I need to learn more vocabs :(**
> 
> **WARNING: This chapter contains scenes of heavy violence, torture, and mild gore. Chara will be about as vicious as they'll ever get. Thou hast been warned O_O**

* * *

Toriel blinked, then frowned down at the pair of eggs in her hands curiously, as though the two little white ovals held the secrets of the universe.

_How strange. I had thought I..._ She pondered, then shrugged dismissively and proceeded to crack the eggs into a bowl. She picked up a whisk and stirred at the yolk, humming to herself a tuneless melody as she got working on her signature dish that Chara so adored.

She had forgotten what this felt like. She hadn't cooked for someone in so long, haven't felt that sense of fulfillment that warmed her when someone enjoyed her food in years. She used to adore seeing a child bloom into an unwitting smile as they took that first tentative bite. It was the single most beautiful visage she had had the pleasure of seeing, and she relished the fact that she would be able to behold it again.

As she poured the egg into the boiling pot of sweet milk, filling the room with a velvety aroma, she couldn't help but be reminded of the time when her son coaxed Chara into helping her cook for the first time. They were such a quiet child back then, so frightened of the world and everything in it. They shook like a newborn chick simply standing next to her, holding tightly onto the wooden spoon to their chest as though it was a shield. They could barely able to hold the bowl of egg yolk she had given them to pour into the pot. She feared that they might tip the boiling utensil and hurt themselves in the process, but they'd managed wonderfully in the end. And as small a task as it was, the smile on Chara's face at that moment was, not counting her son's, like the first ray of sun she'd seen in centuries.

With a serene smile of her own, Toriel finished stirring the pot, and set the wooden spatula down on the counter next to her, allowing the honey sweet mixture to simmer. She brought both of her hands over her fluttering heart and sighed with a light shudder, a stray tear slipping out.

She still could not believe this wasn't a dream.

She had her child back. Her long dead child back from the grave.

She remembered the day, all those years ago, when her children had left her and Asgore. The morning had been… bad, to say the least, indescribably so. To find her new child cold and unmoving on their bed, their face contorted in agony as no doubt the buttercup poisons ate at their insides even to their very last breathing moment; she didn't think she would feel so much pain for a child she'd only known for a little less over a year, but she did. She felt her heart tear at the sight. Then to have her first child vanish into dust right before her eyes. It was something a mother was never meant to see, never should have had to see.

At first, when she saw her child for the first time in sixty years, she was skeptical, afraid that it was some cruel joke played on her by some terrible creature in the Ruins. But... then the child called her 'mother'. She spoke to them, held them in her arms, smelt their scent long forgotten in time. They were on edge at the presence of a human, yet placed their family's well being above their fears. The way their expression simply collapsed when they found out that their brother was dead, the love they showed for their family, Toriel held no doubt that this was the Chara that she remembered, her child that she'd lost.

What was happening in that moment was, for the lack of a better word, a miracle.

There were questions that needed to be asked, she was sure, but none of them mattered to her in the end. She was the happiest she had ever been since she'd made home in the Ruins, and nothing could take that away from her.

A short high-pitched scream echoed down the hallway, and made Toriel start. She quickly stole away her tears and shuffled over to the doorway, putting a worried ear out to the living room, and in turn the rest of the house.

Amidst the relative silence, she heard a distant guffaw that was quickly hushed as though clamped shut by a hand. She smiled, picturing her child standing in their room, beet red, mortified appearing so crass in front of a new acquaintance.

A wave of relief filled her heart in that moment. She had been rather concerned over Chara's apparent wariness of the new child Frisk, but from the sound of things, it appeared the two were getting along quite well. Unusually well, if she was being honest. Chara wasn't the type who would ever let themselves go enough that they would burst out laughing while in the presence of someone other than their family.

She was reluctantly grateful for the encounter Frisk had with the Vegetoid even if they had disobeyed her words and placed themselves in terrible danger in the process. She hoped that the two could be friends. She wanted to protect the new human from her husband's law, and in order to do so, she needed Frisk to be as happy as they could be living in the Ruins, so happy that they'd never want to leave. It may be unhealthy for both her and the child, but presented with the alternative there was no argument that it must be this way. She just hoped that Chara would not view it as her trying to replace Asriel or something equally upsetting.

They are a smart child. She reminded herself. They will understand, if not immediately then eventually. No need for a silly old woman like me to worry.

A second scream echoed down the hallway, louder this time, filled with distinctively more anguish than the first. Toriel reeled back, stunned. She almost questioned if she had misheard, but then the third scream came, then the fourth, then the fifth. In the end, she wasn't sure how many screams rang out. After the third they were starting to bleed into each other, becoming conjoined into a single cry of anguish that seemed to go on and on.

Toriel's motherly instincts kicked up, worry gripping her in its icy clutch. She briefly turned to turn off the stove, and hastily made her way out the kitchen, and down the hallway.

As she approached her child's room, the screams got louder, more pained, and more horrified, which made her heart beat harder and harder. She nearly ran the last few steps, and reached for the door with enough force to just yank it open.

"Isn't this delightful dear?"

Toriel froze at the sound of Chara's voice, her hand hovering just over the door handle.

"Look at them. Such gorgeous fingers you have. I realise that most children have hands to die for, but yours, child, yours look like that of a talent. You will grow up to be the envy of the neighbourhood, I know it. I am certain of it."

Toriel blinked, confused at their words. The blood-curdling screech had suddenly died down, and the way her child spoke portrayed they were in no trouble of any sort. What had she been hearing then? Hadn't she heard a child crying out for help?

Despite her manners, Toriel found herself leaning into the door, raising her ear fluff and listening close.

That was when she heard it, a sound of soft sniffles, a sound of a child crying.

"P.. Please…" She heard the child, Frisk, beg. "Please stop."

"Stop? Now? I think we've already gone past the point of no return, don't you? And more importantly, why should I? If you haven't noticed, I'm having a delightful time."

Toriel blinked, shocked. Chara, her sweet little Chara, sounded so… hateful right then. So ugly, and malicious. She never heard them speak like that before. It was strange, frighteningly so. She didn't understand. Why did they sound like this? Why weren't they doing anything when Frisk was obviously in distress?

As if to reinforce her point, she heard the child sob, "It hurts… God, it hurts. Please stop."

Her child giggled in response, a hollow, bone-chilling sound. "Hurts, does it? You mean like this?!"

Toriel jumped back as Frisk broke into an ear piercing screech.

"Tell me! Is this what you meant?! Is it?!"

"Yes! It is! Please please stop! It hurts! IT HURTS!"

A crude, unhinged laughter filled the air.

"This is your eighth! I think you've had enough experience to control yourself at this stage, don't you?!"

The child's shriek shook the house, reverberating off the walls and drowning out every other possible noise around. Toriel was shaking, her hands covering her mouth as she staggered back away from the room, disbelieving.

She knew she should be barging inside, step in and stop whatever is happening inside the room and save Frisk. But she didn't. She couldn't. She was no fool. She could see clear as day that her child was somehow… tormenting the new human, and was getting some sick, perverted joy out of the act, but her mind could not believe it, would not accept it. She fervently denied the truth despite it being laid out right in front of her.

_No._ She told herself. _My Chara is a sweet, clever child that seeks to help the monsters every way they can. They are the heir to the throne, and have magnificent potential in becoming a ruler of monsters far greater than Asgore or even myself._

… _But what about against a human? What were they for the humankind?_

The scream suddenly stopped again, and was immediately followed by another bout of sorrow filled sobs.

Chara's fiendish giggle jittered out the door, sending a frozen chill down her spine.

"Oh my. Look at this one. Your index finger, is it? Such pretty little thing. Worth its weight in diamonds I'm sure. It's certainly prettier than any gemstone I've ever seen. I should keep it in a glass case with the rest, cast a freezing spell over it and gaze at it for years to come."

Toriel nearly heaved, bile rising up her throat as she realised what her child was doing to the poor human.

"Oh, but now you're out of fingers. How sad." Chara coo-ed, their breath quivering with barely tamed excitement. "Shall I end this? You are in so much pain, aren't you? Yes you are. Come here, I will administer the -I said come HERE!- I will administer the finishing blow. Right through the heart, just as you prefer."

Toriel's heart stopped at those words, and dropped to the pit of her stomach. With not a second to waste, she dashed forward and gripped at the door handle.

"So long dear. I do hope you don't come back this time."

The door flung open, and the darkness jumped out and swallowed her whole.

* * *

Toriel blinked, then frowned down at the pair of eggs in her hands curiously, as though the two little white ovals held the secrets of the universe.

_How strange. I had thought I..._ She pondered, then shrugged dismissively and proceeded to crack the eggs into a bowl. She picked up a whisk and stirred at the yolk, humming to herself a tuneless melody as she got working on her signature dish that Chara so adored.

* * *

#  **Chapter 3**

_Leave._

_Just give up and leave._

The doorknob twisted, and Chara nearly pulled their blade and threw it at the nearest wall. Outwardly, however, they suppressed the violent urge and put on a haughty smile that revealed none of the raging storm of emotion that wreaked havoc in them.

_Unbelievable_ , they thought irately. _How stubborn can one child be?_

Death after death after death Frisk experienced, each more horrible than the last, just as they had promised. Chara knew that when time rewound back, all of the things that they did to the child before would disappear, making them good as new. The way they used to kill the child initially, stabbing them in the heart, breaking their neck. They were all too quick. Too simple. The child marched back into the room immediately after the reset with nary a thought, their death forgotten, much like their cuts, burns, and bruises.

Chara knew that, in order to truly hurt the child, they needed to make sure that each death was memorable, that despite all of their physical injuries disappearing, they would still be haunted by the mere thought of it, make sure that nothing would erase what they did to them from their mind. They needed to be 'creative', make the experience special, memorable. Unforgettable.

The first of Chara's 'creativity' came out when they stabbed the child in the abdomen, sliced their flesh open, and wrenched out the hot, slick innards within with their bare hand. The child had been so shocked then. Their whole body was frozen stiff, their back hunched, face pale, and eyes bugging out as though about to pop with red veins visible around the edges. Their trembling arms were hovering over their wound, wanting yet hesitant to hold the entrails that spilled over the floor.

When Chara gave an experimental shove at the child's face, they nearly barked out in laughter when they fell over, slow and stiff. They had to admit, it was quite funny to see someone so petrified that they would fall like a recently cut timber in a forest. All that was missing was a loud creaking groan and a branch rattling thud.

What was even better was that the child hadn't died out right when they hit the floor, and Chara had the opportunity to find out how long they would last if they began playing around with the protruding organs like they were playdough.

Frisk flailed and howled for one whole minute before they finally died.

The second 'creative' thing Chara did was to burn the child alive with their magic, just as they had promised before. The child wailed, flailed and rolled about, trying their best to put out the fire that ate at their hair, clothes and skin. Unfortunately for them, magic flames were eternal, disappearing only when it wielder willed it, or when it ran out of things to burn.

And there were so much of the child to burn.

Frisk's scream turned into wails, then into choked wheeze as their skin turned from yellow, to red, to mangled black. The child was calling out for help in the end. They called out to their mother, their father, then to some names that Chara didn't recognise. Papyrus, Sans, Undyne, Mettaton. _Who are they?_ Chara wondered, but ultimately decided that they didn't care. No one was coming to help. No one ever did.

The child died alone, crying, and in pain, their charred body wrapped up in a small ball, appearing like an odd lump of charcoal than the human they were.

The rest of the resets went about the same: Chara peeled the skin off their fingers, sliced off their limbs and watched them crawl on the floor like a slug, and one time, they cut out the child's eyes, tongue, and ears, and let them bleed out in absolute darkness. Unable to see, unable to call out. Frightened. Helpless.

Each method was vicious, about as cruel as Chara could think of getting at the time.

And yet still the child still came back, each and every time without fail.

Chara could feel them through their connection: Frisk's cold relief as they found themselves rewound back in time at the every start of a reset, their gut dropping despair when they realised they died again, and their heart-stopping terror when they forced themselves to open the door and faced their tormentor once more.

They no longer spoke, no more spouting on about friends and whatever, their lips pressed tight, eyes wide and unblinking. But they still held themselves firm, never hesitating to step into the room to meet their inevitable demise.

Chara would watch them icily every time, racking their brain to figure out what in Gods they were doing wrong.

The child should have run away by now, they thought. Any sane person would have run away by now after all that. So why not this child? Why did they still come? How had they not gone mad? How could they beg for a chance to come in the good grace of someone who had tortured them over and over?

Chara didn't understand.

They couldn't.

They took out their dagger and readied themselves.

They wouldn't admit it, but somehow, at some point, they were no longer just having sadistic fun with the child anymore. The power dynamic has shifted without them even knowing. Standing before the tiny human, Chara felt that they were facing an iron wall, a tidal wave that came endlessly and unrelentingly.

Completely and utterly unstoppable.

Cold sweat dripped down their forehead as the sight of the slowly opening door shook something primal within them. They didn't acknowledge it for what it was. They couldn't afford to.

The child closed, and locked the door behind them, make sure that no one will be able to interrupt them no matter how loud they cried.

They knew this reset would be particularly bad.

_And yet here they are, nonetheless._

There were no words exchanged between the two.

Chara leapt forward and swung, and began their dance once more.

* * *

Chara flipped their dagger into the air, pulling Frisk's attention in just long enough to catch them with a left hook to the cheek. Jaw clenched tight, the child stumbled to the side, and the monarch watched them go, only shifting their attention in order to snatch the falling blade from the air.

"You are too easily distracted." They reprimanded as they approached the child who managed to remain standing on two feet. "Pay attention to the attacker dear, not the weapon. A dagger is no better than a boiled carrot when no one's wielding it."

Chara's dagger flew past right in front of Frisk's nose and embedded itself in the wall. Surprised, the child sauntered back, their eyes focused on the knife as the world spun around them.

"What did I just say?!"

Chara appeared beside them and punched them again. The third strike came right after, getting them right in the gut. Then, when the child doubled over from the blow, the monarch grab their head with both of their hands and kneed them without hesitation. With a loud crack, Frisk fell on their side, blood spurting out from their nose.

"You really don't know how to listen, do you?" Chara shook their head with a scowl.

Frisk didn't reply, or rather couldn't. Their head was spinning from the repeated blow. They rolled their arms and legs over and tried to lift themselves up, but as quickly as they tried, they lost balance and fell over on their side again with a small, "Oof."

Chara exhaled exasperatedly, threw their leg back and kicked the child. With a pained groan, Frisk rolled on their back. Chara stepped over them, looming over them with silently burning glare.

"You won't leave." They said it as a statement, rather than a question.

Frisk, even with their eyes half rolled into the back of their head, nodded slowly.

"Why? Do you really love dying so much? Are you one of those sick perverts who get off on being in pain?" They hissed mockingly.

Frisk took a moment to recover their pounding head, then shook their head fervently. It was a bafflingly normal response from an inconceivably abnormal child. It made Chara's temper flare.

"Then why?!" They snapped, making the child wince in start as though anticipating for another bout of abuse. "You know I'm not going to stop. What is it that you hope to gain from this? What do you want?"

"I…" Frisk's voice cracked, hoarse as though they'd been screaming for a full minute nonstop. Which they had, of course. Just not in this timeline. "I just want to stay."

Chara growled, their rage boiling again. They've had this conversation before. So many times. It never got them anywhere besides make their temper snap. "And so you've told me, and I've told you, you will not. Is this a long running battle of endurance? Are we just playing a game to see who caves in first?"

Frisk slowly stood up, and Chara let them, watching them rise to their feet with shaking limbs.

"M… maybe it is…" The child smiled, but it paled in comparison to the bright, colourful ones they used to make. "But I'm not leaving. I'm not… Not until I prove to you that I'm different."

"I'm afraid you've already done that, child. You've shown me that you lack any sort of survival instinct and have a death wish the size of a Zeppelin."

"Then I'm not going to leave until you let me stay." Frisk countered.

"Then we will be here for all eternity." Chara hissed. "Neither of us will stop. We will be stuck in this infinite cycle of _your_ death."

Frisk pondered for a second, before suggesting weakly. "Or you could give up and let me stay."

Chara's hands gripped into a tight fist at their insolence. "And then what? We go out there hand in hand and play hide and seek?"

"That'd be nice…" Frisk muttered hollowly, their mind not quite there, as thought they were already imagining themselves running about playing childish games with their murderer. But in the moment that followed, they frown. "You... don't like hide and seek, though. You like cops and robbers more."

"That's _not_ the point!" Chara boomed, then closed their eyes, placing a trembling hand over their pulsing forehead. They breathed in deep, then exhaled slow. When they spoke again, their voice was a whisper, as though speaking any louder would set them off again. "Don't you see that this can only go one way? Don't you see _you_ are the one stuck with the short end of the stick? _I_ am not the one who is getting tortured every five minutes. _I_ am not the one who is getting their body broken to pieces. _I_ am not the one who's getting fucked up-!" Chara stopped again, clamping their hand over their mouth at the slight. They inhaled three times, in slow succession, then nodded at the child with a half smile. "All right. Very well. You know what? I understand. You won't give up. That's your choice. But know that neither shall I. So I shall, instead, ask you a question." Chara's blood red eyes fixed on the child's dull brown, ensuring that Frisk didn't miss what they were about to say. "How can I make you leave?" They asked. "What can I do to make you leave this place, and make sure you won't ever come back?"

Frisk blinked slowly once, then twice.

"What will make me leave?" They repeated, and fell silent, eyes dropping to the floor as they contemplated the answer. Chara waited patiently, finally feeling as though they were getting somewhere.

After what seemed like a whole minute of quiet, the child looked up with a soft smile.

"Come with me." They answered.

There was a long pregnant pause that lasted for the next several moments, long seconds where neither children spoke, or moved.

Finally, Chara blinked.

"I beg your pardon?" They said in a hushed whisper. They weren't entirely sure if they had heard right.

"Come with me," Frisk repeated a bit louder. Their eyes were starting to twinkle with signs of life that had been missing for so long. "I'll leave this place if you promise you will come with me, and stay with me always. I'll leave, and I'll never come back, I swear."

Chara blinked again, then looked at the child as though they've been slapped.

Of all the things that they thought Frisk would say, this did not even make it to the list. They didn't even consider it as a possibility.

"That's…" They began, but didn't know how to finish the sentence, their mind drawing up blank. They certainly tried, but even after a few seconds of hard thinking, they had no idea what they were going to say.

What do they say to that?

What _can_ they say to that?

"I... had thought you wished to stay with mother and the Monsters." Chara spoke weakly, uncertainty marring their tone.

"I do… But not as much as I want to stay with you." Frisk beamed.

Chara's eye twitched as they felt drops of the child's happiness seep into them. "How can you smile, after all that you've been through?" They didn't understand it. It was too ludicrous for them to understand it.

"I'm always happy to see you. Always."

Chara couldn't help staring incredulously. "You're mad."

Frisk giggled, a soft tickling sound. It was the first time in eight resets. "Maybe. People tell me I'm weird… I don't know if that means I'm crazy."

"Crazy, I'm certain." Chara muttered under their breath, and dropped their gaze to the ground before them, their mind a jumbled mess, unable to figure out what it all meant.

_Think._ They told themselves. _Do not let your judgement be clouded. Think._

_The child is trying to throw me off._ They proposed, then countered themselves, _To do what?_

There was only so much the child could do on their own. Chara was bigger, stronger, and more battle trained than them. The child didn't have any hidden weapons on them either, Chara had cut and burned so much of their body that they knew it for certain. If Frisk wanted to distract and catch them off guard, the best they could do as an attack was to give them a hug without getting their arms sliced off.

_Then why would the kid be so persistent?_

The child's wish, somehow, oddly made sense. Chara didn't hear all that much from Frisk regarding the past timelines, but they knew that they were some sort of… ghost entity that haunted Frisk, and followed them around everywhere, talking to them, guiding them. Had Frisk gotten attached to them? So much so that they would rather be with their torturer and murderer than those who loved them unconditionally? Even in their death, Chara couldn't imagine themselves being so nice to a human that they would become… whatever they were to the child. It must have been some friendship for Frisk to go through all this trouble, for Frisk to come back for it after all that Chara had done to them since their resurrection. The concept was difficult to grasp. A bit _too_ difficult to grasp.

_There must be something else. There has to be._

"No. That is... ridiculous. Why would you want to stay with… me of all people?"

_They are lying. They must be lying._

"I… I don't know." Frisk shrugged. "You're important to me. We've been through so much together. I can't imagine my life without you next to me."

"Even after everything I did to you?" Chara asked.

Frisk shrugged. "I don't mind."

"You don't-" Chara could not bring themselves to continue. "What the _hell_ is wrong with you?"

Frisk giggled again quietly, happily, and Chara felt the same happiness flutter inside themselves, like a little butterfly taking flight for the first time in its life. They placed an unconscious hand over their chest.

When they realised what they were doing, they frowned and hastily dropped their arm back to their side. They shook their head. "No. That's… that's not good enough. No relationship is worth so much pain. After what I did to you, you should hate me."

"I don't." Frisk replied, so certain of their words, so sure of their emotions. "I know you are a violent person, and I'm okay with that. I want to be with you regardless."

Another flutter. Chara resisted the urge to grasp at the warmth that seemed to spread across their entire body, and rip it to shreds.

_No. These are lies. No human is this nice._ Chara reminded themselves. _They are hiding something. They want something from us just like everyone else_.

_Do not let them get to you._

_Do NOT let them get to you._

In that moment, a pair of blood red orbs flashed with new found anger.

"Even when I give you the chance, you fail to provide me with a proper answer." Chara pulled their dagger out for the twenty-seventh time that evening, "At least we have made some progress, no? Now I know that you want something from me. You want my companionship. How curious. How creepy, to be wanted by such a sick, manipulative child." They chuckled their voice low and sinister.

Frisk appeared disappointed, sad, but they stood their 'battle' stance: their head slouched, legs slightly apart, feet on their toes and ready to dodge in any direction at any time.

Chara's free hand lit up with fire magic. "Tell me what you want from me."

"Nothing." Frisk said simply. "I just want to be near you."

A burst of flame shot out, and they dodged to the side, then ducked to dodge the metal blade aimed for their throat.

"You lie. You have an agenda with me, with the Monsterkind. That's why you won't tell me why you came back to the Pit." Chara's voice was cold as the dagger they swung.

"It's not. Please trust m-"

Frisk back stepped away from the kick that was aimed for their mouth, but it still managed to hit them right between the eyes. Frisk's head whipped back, and in that moment Chara's hand snaked forward and grabbed them by the collar, just long enough to yank them forward and pommel the child in the nose with the base of their dagger.

"Ugh!" Frisk's head immediately whipped back again as though they had hit a trampoline, albeit with an addition of two blood spurts erupting from their nose. They stumbled back, but quickly gained their bearing and brought their sight back on Chara, prepared for the next attack.

"This is your last chance before I become 'creative' again. And I assure you, I will be more careful this time. This reset will last much longer than the last."

"I…" Frisk quickly wiped their nose on the sleeve of their shirt. Their hands were trembling, their sight clouded with tears. They were terrified, terrified and frustrated. "I don't get why it's so hard for you to accept. I just want to be your friend. That's all I want."

"Stubborn." Chara swiped their magic encased hand across the air before them, creating five balls of fireballs that hovered in the air for a moment before tracking Frisk's position and flew out towards them one by one.

It was an old trick they've used four times already, but Frisk always seemed to dodge the attack in a certain way. It was a pattern that was much too easy to read and manipulate.

As Chara expected, the child ended up right in front of them avoiding the flames. Without a moment of pause, Chara backhanded Frisk, and when they stumbled to the side, Chara grabbed their wrist.

"Let's start with something simple."

With that, Chara brought the dagger down on the child's hand.

Four of Frisk's fingers was sliced clean off as though they were made of butter.

In what had become a broken record for Chara, Frisk let out a howl of pure agony. Unfortunately for them, Chara wasn't yet quite done. As soon as the dagger had done their job, they threw it to the ground. Their now free hand burst into white flames, and slammed down on the four bleeding stubs that were the remains of Frisk's fingers.

As Chara found out, cauterising a wound doesn't cause a sizzling sound as it did in the radio shows, but the child's scream reaching a new height was an indication enough that the pain was still indeed excruciating.

After a few seconds of thrashing and screeching from the child, smell of burning flesh stung Chara's nose, making their stomach churn. They let the child go after a few more seconds, and got a glimpse of the child's blackened raw flesh before Frisk started crawling away, cradling their fingerless hand close.

Usually, this was the point when Chara would let the child go and allow them to wallow in their pain for a bit before they started again. Sadly, they weren't in a very patient mood anymore.

Frisk didn't get too far before Chara's hand shot out again and yanked them by their hair. Chara threw them as hard as they could onto the wooden tile below, causing a loud thunk to echo out the room, and just to be extra cruel, they stepped on the back of their head, securing them in place.

"You are so… very annoying. Do you know that? Neither of us is happy with how this has turned out. Why won't you tell me the truth?"

"I am. I _am_ telling you the truth. Why won't _you_ believe _me_?" Frisk cried, tears flooding their eyes.

Orange blade swept down and sliced the top half of Frisk's ear.

They shrieked again.

"Humans don't just be _friends_ together dear. They always have an agenda."

Chara kicked the still screaming child over and sat down on their chest.

"Now this is a familiar position." They hummed, then saw the river of blood streaming down Frisk's ear. "Oh dear. That won't do. Can't have you bleeding out on me. Here, let me help."

"No, no! Please, not that!" Frisk yelled hysterically at the sight of Chara's burning hand closing in on the wound.

"Oh? Don't want me to mend your wound? Alright then." Chara's fire magic shifted into a magic blade again, blue this time. With their other hand, they gripped Frisk by the jaw and made them look straight at them, and brought their magic blade up, the tip hovering dangerously close to Frisk's left eye.

Realising their situation, Frisk's body suddenly became very still, even their sobs dying off to minimise their movement.

"Good child. I am rather glad that you respond so well to the promises of violence. It's the only way to truly get your attention, I find. Now, tell me: why do you want us to be friends?"

"I… I don't know." Frisk stuttered.

The blue blade inched closer, and Frisk did their best to sink into the floor.

"I ask again: _Why_ do you want us to be friends?"

"I don't know! I just do!" Frisk yelled, tears pouring down.

They then cried out in pain when an orange blade sliced off a thin layer of their cheek.

"Do not yell at me, you impudent child!" Chara roared, then leaned down close with their blue blade again. "This is your one last chance. Tell me the truth, or I will carve out your eyes again. And this time, I assure you, I will be very slow."

Frisk continued to sob, their face scrunched in ache. When the blade lightly grazed their skin, they nearly jumped in panic, and began shouting in hysterics. "Okay, okay! I'll tell you. I'll tell you the truth. Please, no more. No more!"

Chara grinned, pleased. "Good. That is very good." They pulled the magic blade away, far enough for the child to ease up somewhat, but not so far that Chara couldn't kill them in an instant if they wanted. "Do take your time, dear, but not too long, if you don't mind. I don't want you sweet talking your way out of this one see?"

Frisk's rapid breaths slowly calmed, their wide, frightened eyes shrinking down to normal, before screwing shut as they wept quietly.

Chara allowed them ten seconds to cry before they prodded again. "Are you ready now?"

Frisk nodded, still racked with sobs. They took in two quick puffs of air, before they finally began, "I… I want to be friends with you because…" They gulped. "Because I want us to talk."

"Talk?" Chara quirked their brow.

"Yes." Frisk nodded, as though it was the most obvious answer in the world. "I want us to talk. I… I want us to get to know each other, as two real, living people. I want us to play together when we're bored. I want us to go to school together when we're ready. I want us to be there for each other when one of us is feeling alone, to rely on each other when things get hard."

"What? What on earth are you on about?!" Not having expected such answer, Chara yelled, frustrated, but the child either didn't hear or didn't care, because they simply continued on with their reasoning.

"I want us to be partners, just like before, because I… I can't do many things alone. I always need help. I'm always lost and scared. I need you there to guide me, and... I-I want to be that person for you too. I want us to be friends because…" Frisk sniffed. "Because I just can't imagine what my life would be without you. Because I don't know what I'll do without knowing that you'll always be there for me. I want to be friends with you because I don't want to be alone. I want to be friends with you because I don't want _you_ to be alone. Not again. Never again." Frisk trailed off, a hesitant, tearful smile on their wounded face.

Chara felt their blood boil. The child was spouting nonsense again, instead of giving them a straight answer. "You are insufferable." They snarled.

"Please." The child begged regardless as they beamed reassuringly. "You don't have to be scared. Not anymore."

Chara felt something inside them snap, cold storm clouding over their expression. With eyes wide like a hawk, they raised their magic covered hand up, and brought it down fast, aimed to kill. But just before they hit their target, the blow slowed to a near halt, the magic aura around it vanishing into thin air. They found themselves, oddly enough, hovering their hand over to Frisk's face, and flicking them on the nose.

Chara stared, and the child stared back, their brown orbs wide in shock. As the monarch tried to figure out why they had done that, Frisk's smile widened and became filled with… joy, excitement. Hope.

"Chara?" The child called in a hesitant whisper, their tears now of tentative joy than terror. "Chara, do you remember? Do you remember me?"

Chara's red orbs alternated between their hand and the child. They shook their head. "Remember? No, I… What? What is this? What are you talking about?"

A small desperate hand reached out and grasped at their hand before they could pull away.

"No, please. Chara, please. Think. Do you remember when we first went to Waterfall and we met Woshua for the first time? I-I-I got so scared of him that I ran and nearly fell into the water. Do you remember?" The child asked, almost pleaded.

"Woshua? I don't know what that is. I don't know what you are-" _"talking about. He's quite adorable."_

_Little yellow face turns to them, appalled. "You think THAT'S adorable?"_

_They chuckle. "Judging a book by its cover? Such a naughty child you are. Why, you deserve a punishment."_

_They reach out and quickly flick the unsuspecting kid on the nose, making them jolt in surprise._

" _There." They smile. "Now you will think twice about being so rude as to run away from someone in fright. If we see him again, you will apologise and ask for his forgiveness. Then you can introduce yourself proper and possibly make a new 'friend' you like so much."_

_The child is speechless, and grabs their nose with both hands. But soon they are smiling too, a soft blush creeping up their cheek as they nod sheepishly._

_The monarch chuckles again, sighs inwardly, and follows the child as they begin their brave march into the depths of Waterfall. Happy, and content._

"Ugh!" Chara slammed their hand just above their eye, where a splitting migraine began to form just as the strange images shattered away. Their heart was pounding all of the sudden, as though they'd been running a marathon, filled with the strange joy that clashed with the cold rage that still boiled within them. Their world spun on its heel, and it took them a great effort to maintain their balance and not fall over flat on their face.

_Shit._ They cursed as they pressed on their aching head. _What… What was that?_

They glare down at the child who turned back up at them worriedly. They growled and brought a wobbling hand over and slapped it next to the child's head .

"What… What did you do?" They growled, their heart booming with the strange emotion threatening to consume them whole.

"I… I didn't do anything." Frisk answered happily.

"Lies." They hissed. "You… you are projected this… vision on to me using our connection. You're making me feel this thing."

"I'm not." _I'm really not. Feel our connection. I'm not doing anything._

For reasons they couldn't explain, Chara did as they were asked, and began searching within them, that part of their being where they knew they felt the child before. They found…

Nothing.

Chara gazed down at Frisk who was smiling serenely, the blood covering them doing nothing to mar the purity of it. They tried to scowl, but it came out confused, uncertain. "I… I don't understand."

"I don't either." Frisk admitted. "But I feel it Chara. Your emotion. It's so strong, and it's… good. It's pleasant. Happy. I can't name it."

Chara bit their lips and took in calming breaths.

"You… You do not know what this is? Truly?" They asked skeptically.

"No, I don't." Frisk shook their head. "But I'll be there with you every step of the way while you figure it out. If you'd just let me." Frisk held up their hand, the uninjured one, to Chara's face and caressed their cheek. "Please. Let's not fight anymore."

Chara suddenly found it difficult to breathe, their nerves on end like a frightened cat. The urge to pull away was immense, but then the child was there, inside them as well. Their presence was like a soothing balm, calming them down slowly but surely.

"You're projecting yourself onto me." Chara accused, though without the barb they had intended it to carry. They held the blue magic blade closer to the child's eye.

"Now I am, yes." Frisk laughed softly, unfazed by the threat. "You don't have to be scared. It'll be okay. We're all here for you. Me, mum, dad, and all the other monsters. They can all be your friend. You don't have to be scared ever again."

"A foolish notion. Having a loved one should make you terrified. You'll lose them someday, and the pain of their loss will destroy you." Chara spat though it lacked malice, or any sort of emotion at all, as though they were just reiterating something they've read in a book a million times over.

"If you know you'll lose them, shouldn't you spend as much time as you can with them while you still can? If you do lose one of them, others will be there to cheer you up. And if you lose all of them, you'll meet new friends after. You'll be so much happier that way, I think."

Chara wanted to call the child a fool, a masochistic moron who endlessly sought pain in their lives. Why else would they want all of these things? To make so many friends, to make friends of _them_. But the words got caught in their throat when they saw just how… sure of themselves Frisk appeared, so certain of what they believed to be true. Even though Chara knew they were wrong... it made them want to...

It made them want to...

… _What are you doing?_

Chara's breath hitched. It was like a bomb going off in their heart, an explosion of deadly cold spreading through their body.

_What are you doing?_ They repeated to themselves. _Do not believe them. They're tricking you. They'll hurt you. They'll make you weak._

_Don't you remember what happens when you become weak?_

Chara and Frisk both blanched, staring into each other with frightful eyes.

"Chara?" Frisk shook, but the monarch didn't hear them.

_You must survive. You must be strong. Hurt them before they can hurt you. Kill them. Don't even give them the chance._

"Chara, no. You don't have to do this. It'll never end." Frisk pled.

_Don't listen. They're a Siren. Their words are like honey. They'll entice and lure you to your demise._

Chara's mind was made up before Frisk could even open their mouth to protest.

With a roar, they shoved the blue blade into Frisk's eyes, right into their skull.

The child's instinct was good, freezing solid the moment the blade came in contact with their eye. Not even a twitch from them, the blade was embedded into their head without drawing a drop of blood.

"Such reflex. I wonder how long you can last?" Chara hissed, their eyes almost feral.

_Make them move. Twist their neck. Cut their head open._

"Chara. Chara, please." Frisk pleaded, their body rock still, unable to even blink.

"Shh. Shh." Chara shushed, placing a trembling finger on the child's lip. "Be quiet. That's enough yammering for today don't you think?"

_What's there to think about? Kill them. Slice and dice. Cut them into little pieces_.

"Please. Don't do this."

_Shut the annoying little tart up._

"Heh. 'Don't do this'? Truly?" Chara giggled, amused. "You expect me to listen to you now? When you have never done the same courtesy for me?"

Chara's magic blade pulled back out, dyed a deep orange and sunk back into Frisk's shoulder. The ensuing scream was cut off by Chara backhanding the child, then clamping the same hand down onto their mouth.

"BE! QUIET!" They roared, their cheeks turning red at the intensity. "You never listen. Why don't you ever listen? What part of 'be quiet' don't you understand?!"

They swept their blade side of the child's face, slicing off another thin layer off their cheek. Frisk's muffled scream filled the air.

Chara punched them again.

"I am so tired of your- STOP! MOVING! - so tired of your persistence."

Again.

"I am so fed up with your insolence!"

And again.

"I am just so SICK of your presence!"

They wrapped both hands around Frisk's throat, choking them.

"Leave."

They squeezed as hard as their fingers could.

"LEAVE."

They squeezed and squeezed and squeezed, until their hands were trembling, until they lost all sense of their fingers. Yet it still wasn't enough.

They threw the child's head onto the ground, lit both of their hands with magic blades, and brought them up into their above their head, tips pointing straight at Frisk's temple.

"Just LEAVE! Just leave me alone!"

A bright white flash blinded them, and suddenly, Chara found themselves soaring through the air, flying backwards. They crashed against the wardrobe and dropped face first onto the tile floor, their magic vanishing into thin air.

They coughed, their back aching after a nasty hit against the wardrobe door handle. With a loud groan, they dragged themselves up, one limb at a time.

"What… in the world?" They growled and looked up, searching for the source of their attacker.

And in the moment that they found them, their heart stopped, their entire body freezing in place. Their gaze darted across the room at the tall figure crouching on the floor, cradling the bloodied child in her arm, her horrified gaze permanently fixed upon them.

Chara paled as all the malice and anger evaporated away, giving way to sheer, unadulterated horror.

"M… mother?" Their voice was hushed, eyes wide, pupils dilated and unhinged. They looked as though their whole world was crumbling around them.

Toriel had a similar expression. One hand on her mouth, tears beginning to pool as she took in the sight laid before her. Her child's room which she had worked so hard to keep clean over the decades was now stained in deep red. Around the wooden tile, human… parts rolled about, detached from their owner as they were never meant to. The human child that she brought home lay in a bloody heap, their face a bleeding, swollen mess, still and unmoving. Had she not had them in her lap, and hadn't felt their shallow breath herself, she might have thought them dead. And to think, had she been a moment later in following the child's anguished cries, or at forcing the locked door open, or even swallowing her motherly instinct and striking her child with fire magic, Frisk would have died by the hands of her own child, her one, precious Chara.

There was a lot a mother do when met with their child's misdeeds. She could shrug it off like it never happened, she could turn blind eyes to it as though she never found out, or she could reprimand their child for it as a good mother should. With Chara being who they were, Toriel always knew that there would be a lot of misdeeds that she will face, but this. This was too much, too fast. She could not shrug this off, she could not turn blind eyes at the pain their child was inflicting on other, and what sort of reprimand does a mother give when they are confronted with the fact that their child was a brutal murderer?

So Toriel did the one thing that a mother could do in such situation.

She denied it.

Her paw like hand lit up with ethereal flames.

"Mother?" Chara trembled in terror, their voice so very small.

"No." Toriel shook her head. "Do not… Do not call me that you foul creature."

If possible Chara's expression became even more broken. "Wha.. what are you saying, mother?"

"I knew it was too good to be true. I knew it was not possible. Yet I had hoped…" A sob escaped her throat and she bit down her lips to suppress them down. She glared at Chara menacingly. "How dare you? How dare you fool me like this? How dare you wear the face of my child and commit such atrocity? Have you no respect for the dead?"

Chara's heart stopped at their mother's words, and they spoke, desperate to correct this mistake. "Mother, no. It's me. It's Chara."

"Silence!"

They unconsciously gasped, their body freezing in place. They never heard their mother so angry before. So… hurt.

"For years, my last memory of my child was that of them lying in bed, dying, in pain, and of me, helpless to save them. It haunted me. It festered within my mind, but I took comfort in the good. I appeased my conscious believing that I've made their life wonderful even just for a little bit before it ended so quickly. But you. Because of you, my last memory of them is now replaced with… with _this_! What sick creature are you? What demented mind do you have?" Toriel shook, the fire in her hands burning furiously. "Get out. Get out of this house or I will remove you by force." Her voice was gruff, her eyes menacing even behind the well of tears that gathered. She was serious of her threat, Chara realised. "And do not ever think to show yourself to me again. You are not welcome here."

Chara felt their entire body slacken, everything within them draining away, leaving nothing but an empty husk.

They didn't expect this to happen. In every reset, they only went as far as the point where Toriel walked up to the room and tried to open the door. When they wanted things to last longer, they told the child to lock the door behind them, which they did without fail every time. They never wanted their mother to see this. They never allowed their mother to find out what sick, demented person they were.

They needed to fix this situation.

They needed to fix it NOW.

Blood red eyes flashed dangerously and landed directly on the battered child in their mother's arm.

_Kill them. Force a reset. Make it so that this never happened._

Chara gazed back up at their mother. _But..._

Swallowing hard, they stood up on their shaky knees, then summoned forth two blue blades on their hands.

"Mother." They began lowly. "I am so sorry that you had to see this. But I promise I will fix this. So please. Please. Hand over that child to me."

Toriel set Frisk down on the floor, then placed them behind her as she too stood.

"This child is under my protection, _fiend._ If you want them, you will need to go through me first."

Chara's grip on their fist tightened to a point where their nails drew blood. "Please mother. I cannot do this."

Toriel's breath hitched, but she held herself firm. "Then leave. Leave this child and I be. You have no place here."

"But… this is my home." Chara cried.

Toriel shook her head. "No. No it is not."

Chara held still for the next few seconds, taking their time until their breathing was even, and their tears slid away.

Then, in the instant that followed, they charged in, both magic blades held ready for battle.

A wave of white flames met their charge, and they began dancing around them. They weren't as agile or good as the child when it came to dodging, but their magic gave them somewhat of an edge. The moment the flames got too close, they sliced it apart with their magic blade, cleaving it in half and allowing them safe passage in the middle.

Amidst the magic barrage, Chara saw an opening, and took it without hesitation. They rolled forward, leaping through the gaps between the flames, and landing themselves behind their mother, and a few steps away from the child.

Ignoring the searing heat on their limbs where they had come a bit too close to the fire, Chara leapt at Frisk, their blades poised to strike them in the throat, head or heart, anyone that they could reach first, anywhere that could kill them as quickly as possible. Before they could reach their target, however, a fluttering purple robe blocked their passage. With a gasp, Chara quickly dispelled the blades away, and flew back when a ball of flame struck them head on.

They crashed on the ground again, and looked up shaking, sending their towering mother a pleading look. "Mother. Please."

"I told you not to call me that." Toriel seethed, then raised a burning palm at them. Chara's heart dropped in fear, and they crawled back. "Reveal yourself."

Chara didn't understand the order. "I… I'm sorry?"

"Remove your disguise. Reveal your true form, or just take a different form. Any form, just… just not my child." Toriel elaborated, then bit her lips as she continued fiercely. "But do not think you can use that fact against me. I will strike you regardless of your appearance if you do not leave this room right now."

"Mother," Chara sniffled, "this is not a disguise. I… I _am_ Chara. I am your child."

"The same trick will not work again." Toriel stated firm. "You now have three seconds to leave this house before I resort to violence." She breathed in deep. "Three..."

"Mother…"

"Two."

"Mother, please!"

"One."

Chara scrambled to a stand, just about the same time as Toriel who threw a particularly large flame that flew at them in a blinding speed.

Chara tried to turn, but knew that they were already too late. They saw the magic come at them, and screwed their eyes shut.

The sight of the child turning their head towards them was the last thing Chara saw before the world became black.

* * *

Chara gasped, finding themselves back in the room, pristine and undisturbed.

They took in breaths short and fast, trying to figure out what had just happened.

The door to the room opened.

"What…" Chara turned. "What did you do?"

Frisk, their body once again whole, closed the door behind them, meeting Chara's confused gaze with their own sorrowful ones.

"I loaded my SAVE. I mean, um... I 'reset'."

"You…" Chara was flabbergast. "You can do that at your own free will?"

Frisk nodded.

"Then why haven't you...?" Chara paused, their mind reeling. "When I was doing all those things to you, why didn't you use it then? You could have saved yourself from… _so_ much."

"It would have scared you." Frisk answered simply.

Chara didn't know what to say to that. "And you chose to use it now… just when your freedom was at hand? I would have been gone. Mother would have healed you. You must have known this."

Frisk looked up at them, their lips lifting to a sad smile. "I didn't want mum to hate you."

Wide blood red eyes stared at the child for what seemed like hours, shocked and disbelieving.

Chara slid off the bed and stomped their way towards the child, eyes ablaze. Frisk clenched their eyes shut, fully expecting the monarch to abuse them once more, but to their surprise, all Chara did was shove them to the side and march out of the room. Soon they heard the front door open in the distance, then slam shut with a loud bang.

Silence ensued. And it lasted all five seconds before Frisk, once again alone, broke down into tears.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Hmm, I don't like scenes that go for so long, but I just couldn't find a breaking point in there. Tell me what you guys thought of it! I want to become a better writer after all.**
> 
> **Ideas abandoned for this chapter: Singing/Dancing Chara. Chara learning what a PET bottle is. Chara playing Pokemon GO (cuz stuff that, yeah?)**
> 
> **Up Next: Frisk goes in search for Chara.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Hi everyone. Once again, thank you all so much for all the comments, kudos and bookmarks! I must apologise for the delay on this one, but I just wasn't happy with what I wrote for this last week (Not that I ever am. I mean, I still think the scenes are a bit jumpy in this one). But anyway, here is chapter 4. Hope you all enjoy it!**
> 
> **And uhhh... no warning this time. At least I don't think it warrants it.**
> 
> **...**
> 
> **I'll let you guys decide.**

* * *

Chara marched their way through the Ruins alone, eyes bright and agleam like a predator in the night, their fuming expression doing nothing to hide the typhoon of emotions raging inside them. They stomped their way through room after room with no regards to their surroundings. Their legs were beginning to strain, muscles pulling with each step, lungs burning for relief. They didn't know how long they had been walking for, but they didn't have it in mind to stop anytime soon. They weren't sure where they were even going. They just needed to walk, just needed to get as far away from that… that _human_ as possible.

" _Are you okay?"_

_"I was worried, so I came to check."_

" _Please, trust me."_

Chara grasped at their head and growled loudly, making their frustrated rage reverb about the purple a flash of memory, they saw Frisk's smiling face that seemed to shine like the morning sunrise even through all that blood and tears.

_"I'm always happy to see you, Chara."_

They punched the nearby wall, but resulting pain wasn't enough to silence the child's pleading voice.

" _I need you."_

" _I can't imagine my life without you."_

_"I want to help."_

"Silence!" They roared at the air, pulling at their hair until they felt the strands snapping off.

" _You're important to me."_

" _I want to be with you."_

" _I don't want you to be alone. Never again."_

"Enough! Enough of this! SHUT UP!"

They turned briskly around a corner in this grand labyrinth, and came across a large twisted corridor just like any other. There was a large sign on the far wall, and as always they ignored it and stomped straight ahead.

On their fifth step into the room, the floor beneath them cracked and fell apart.

Though wide eyed, Chara didn't scream as they spiralled down into the darkness below. They didn't scream the first time when they fell down the Pit, so why would they do it now, falling down this stupid trap that the monsters set up? If anything the fall was a relief. They were finally getting a breather, a chance to get their jumbled thoughts in place.

" _I want to be friends with you."_

Chara watched the light above grow further and further away, their expression no longer angry, frustrated, or mad. They were just tired. So tired, and scared.

_"You don't have to be scared, not anymore."_

The moment they hit the pile of leaves below there was a loud crack, and immediately they rolled over to their side with a loud groan, their head being pounded away by a throbbing pain like an anvil.

With grit teeth, they tried to stand, but the ache in their body was too much and they slipped down to the floor again. They lay still, unable to do much besides remain curled up on the floor, their face buried in a pile of old leave, and wait for the pain to subside. They were so helpless right then, so weak.

Their ragged breaths became shorter, more rapid, and they scrunched their fists, grasping at the dried leaves beneath them until they were crunched into little flakes in their trembling hands.

"Asriel!" They cried into the darkness, their eyes glistening with barely held tears. " _ASRIEL_!"

The echoes died out, leaving only the sound of their seething breaths to fill the void.

The child waited, waited as their body slowly recovered and they understood how alone they were in this chamber.

Nobody came.

"Asriel." The human sobbed, their eyes already closed, their mind slipping from reality. "Where did you go, brother? I need you... I can't..."

Angry fists slammed down onto the ground.

"I NEED YOU!"

Desperate, sorrowful cries echoed into the dark.

And again, nobody came.

They suppressed a sob, but reminded themselves to stop, and to remain strong. _This is foolish. I am being foolish._

It took them several more moments to feel they could stand on their feet again, but once they did, they slowly forced their body up, ignoring all the aches that screamed at them to stop. They puffed a sigh, wiped the moisture from their eyes and replaced the broken wall around their heart. With calculating eyes, they surveyed the little chamber they fell into.

It was like any other part of the Ruin: old, purple, and steadily falling apart, which was great because they had no idea where the hell they were anymore. They must have walked around for at least half an hour, and have failed to keep track of the details of the paths they've taken. Even if they somehow managed to climb back up to the floor above, they would still be hopelessly lost.

_Brilliant. This was not one of my smartest choice in action it seems. How am I going to get back?_

"Hey. Hey, are you alright?"

Chara turned around slowly, taking care to not move their still aching muscle so much. Oddly enough they didn't find anyone behind them.

"Down here!"

_Ah, of course._ Chara scolded themselves. Monsters tended to come in different shapes and sizes. It was rude to assume that everyone would be able to meet your gaze on an eye level. They looked down at the ground before them.

"Greetings." They began. "I apologise for my... intrusion. Is this your home?"

"What, this place? Nah, it's just a place that I hang out from time to time. You?"

Chara chuckled dryly. "If I did live here, I would prefer to have a better method of entry than falling down from the ceiling I think."

"Heh, you're right. That was a dumb question wasn't it?"

"Not at all." Chara shook their head with a good natured smile.

"But boy, you certainly fell from a high place. Didn't know there was a puzzle to solve huh?"

"I'm afraid I wasn't paying much attention, no."

"Are you new to the Underground then?"

"I…" Chara paused. "I suppose I am. It's been quite a while since I've been here. Everything is different it seems."

"Golly, you must be so confused. Look's like it's up to little old me to show you around then."

Chara chuckled at the Monster's unbidden generosity. _Monsters... why are they even called that?_ "I wouldn't want to impose."

"Nah, I ain't got anything better to do anyway. What's your name, friend?"

Chara blinked. "Oh, how rude of me. I am called Chara, Chara Dreemurr."

"Well, howdy, Chara! I'm Flowey. Flowey the Flower! It's great to meetcha!" The flower creature winked, making a little broken star fling out their eye. "Now, let's help you get out this place. It's just so _boring_ around here, don't you think? I'm sure with you here, things will become a lot more _interesting_."

* * *

# Chapter 4

_Chara._

_Chara, can you hear me?_

_Chara, come back, please._

No answer.

Frisk sighed, then looked towards the entrance to the Ruins where they last saw the monarch running off into. In their heart, they could still feel Chara's pounding mix of fear and confusion pulse through them, but it was distant now, a mere speck that was lightly pecking at the corner of their mind. Had it not been so against their nature, Frisk would have cursed under their breath. They sniffled, wanting to cry again.

_Where did it go wrong,_ they couldn't help but wonder. Wasn't everything supposed to be better now? Weren't they supposed to become closer from this change? Become true friends and siblings who will always be together, now and forever? Chara was supposed to get their body back, and they were supposed to meet for the first time in person, go off to free all the monsters together. They were supposed to meet everyone, make friends with them all over again, and it'll be exciting because Chara would be there, making everything so… different. They would go to the surface together and live with mum and dad, attend school, grow up, and live their life in peace and normalcy. And they would do it all together, always having each other's back. Forever partners in crime. Best friends for life.

How on earth were they supposed to do that with what they've just been through?

" _Scream for me, won't you dear?! I do so love your cute little voice!"_

Frisk's heart did a flip, and they slapped their hands over their ears to shake the memories of Chara's deranged cackles away. It didn't work as well as they had hoped, and their heart rate continued its steady climb, chest constricting to a point of suffocation.

There was a low buzzing in their ear that grew louder with each moment, and within the cloud of static, they could feel the memories claw out at them, threatening to pull them back and force them to relive those horrifying moments in an endless loop. They slammed their eyes shut before the phantom pains caught on. This was the last thing they wanted to do right now. They couldn't go through all that again. Not again.

They pulled their trembling limbs in and curled up into a ball on the ground, burying their face into their knees as they pressed their palms into their ear. "I'm okay… I'm alright… I'm okay… I'm alright..."

The air around them roared, becoming thicker, heavier, and more bitter. Gravity lost its weight, and Frisk found themselves floating about, unable to gain any sense of balance whatsoever. They were falling, and flying at the same time. Breathing made them sick, moving was out of the question. Their very existence seemed poisonous to their didn't know what to do. They were stuck.

Frisk wanted to persevere. They wanted to stay determined against an unbeatable enemy just as they had done so many times before. But they just couldn't deny it, no matter how much they wanted to.

They didn't want Chara to come back. Not _this_ Chara. Anyone but _this_ Chara.

This Chara was nothing like anything they've faced before. No creature, good or bad, had ever had so much desire to hurt as they did. No enemy they've faced was so determined to hate. Even Flowey, with all his spouting about 'Kill or Be Killed', only ever attacked their soul directly, tried to kill them as quickly as possible.

As unpleasant the experience of death was, to have their life end and restart from a point in time in the past was a mercy. Cuts and burns were removed instantly, the pain and fatigue vanishing after that blissful oblivion.

Chara, in less than an hour in real time, changed all of that.

Now even after their death, the memories lived on. They had to be careful with each thoughts they had, stay alert as to not let their mind wonder off. One slip was all it took, and the horrors would crawl back from beyond the void, grasping, clawing at their sanity, dragging them back to the dark abyss of their own mind.

They died twenty seven times to Chara. Twenty seven times. And even though it wasn't the highest death count compared to the dozens they totaled after facing Undyne, the scores raked by their own dad, or even the near hundred when they faced Flowey in his soul absorbed form; these were, without a doubt, the most horrible series of deaths Frisk had ever experienced. And they were scared. So scared and helpless.

They didn't want this Chara. They didn't want the pain. They didn't want to be tortured. They just wanted to be with their friends and family, feel their love coursing through them. Was that too much to ask? Would that be so bad?

A wishful, desperate, thought came to them. _I could just leave._

Yes, they could. Just as Chara wanted. They could go to Snowdin, meet Sans and Papyrus, and get into some shenanigans that will end with all of them becoming friends. They didn't need to move on to New Home where Chara would no doubt go. They could just start living in Snowdin with the brothers, using the garage as their room. Sure, they wouldn't be able to meet with their other friends right away, but maybe they'll visit the brothers sometimes? Then they could be introduced in a proper, civilised manner. That way, Undyne won't be so jumpy to kill them on sight, and Metatton and Alphys won't have to continue with their whole 'Killer-Robot' scheme to help out Alphys with her self-image. Frisk could just live their life in Underground, never having to have to cross path with Chara again. Wouldn't that be great?

They'll be at peace.

They'll be so happy.

_"But will you be content?"_

Frisk's entire being tensed and froze, their eyes widening at the familiar voice only their mind could held their breath, their body spooked solid as their heart smashed at their rib cage. They listened close to the emptiness that filled both the Ruin and their mind, to make sure that the voice was from their crumbling sanity and _not_ from the real source.

Silence ensued, yet it wasn't until ten seconds after that Frisk felt safe enough to breathe again.

The child took long, deep breaths, compensating for their lost seconds. As their nerves calmed, they thought back on the words that echoed through their mind, and of the time when those words were spoken to them in person.

" _But will you be content?"_ Chara had asked them.

_"W-what do you mean?" Frisk stuttered back, clutching the stick in their hands tight._

_Chara stared down at them, one hand on their hip as they floated before the child._

" _I mean, will you truly be content with your life if you had chose to stay with mother? Would you be so happy that you won't ever feel the need to reset? Can you guarantee it?" Blood red eyes were wide, and they almost seemed to glow in the eerie darkness of Waterfall. Frisk stepped back nervously._

" _Umm… I don't know." They lifted their arm to examine the nasty bruise they've gotten from their last fight. "But I'd be a lot less hurt I think."_

_Chara scowled down at them, peeved arm crossed before their chest like armor. Their dagger like gaze pinned the child down in place for several, excruciatingly slow seconds. Frisk fidgeted, twisting their legs together as they feared that their partner might yell at them again._

_To their surprise however, all Chara ended up doing was sigh tiredly as all of the tension left their body in a single swoop. With sad eyes, they raised a soft ethereal hand and stroke the child's head in a gentle pat, as though they were touching a prized doll that needed care for. It was some time before Chara opened their mouth again, but when they did, their voice wasn't as hard as before, and if Frisk dared, they might have even said that they sounded... regretful._

_"Do you really wish to go back? You could, if you want. You can reset and make everything as it was before."_

_The question was delivered in a soft velvety tone that was in no way threatening, yet Frisk still felt the weight of it as though it was a physical blow. They suddenly realised how difficult to breathe the wet air of Waterfall could be._

_Chara waited on the child, but in the end, it was quite clear that Frisk wasn't going to come up with an answer on their own. They sighed, then collected themselves, choosing their words carefully to get through to the kid._

_"I think…" They started. "I think you could have lived the rest of your life in that desolate place, coddled by mother, enjoying an adequate life where you'd be happy enough, but…" They pressed their lips thin, then slid their hand down to Frisk's cheek and floated downwards until they were crouching in the air in front of them. When they met eyes, Chara's blood red orbs were soft and kind. "But deep inside, I think you'd know you wouldn't be all there. Something will always be missing. You know of their story now, and your silly little desire to help everyone you meet, it will thrash about within you, beg you to keep going, driving you mad. It is who you are."_

_Frisk dropped their gaze to the ground with a pout, leaning into the cold ghostly hand for support. "I don't know if I like that..."_

" _Quite understandable." Chara chuckled. "You won't ever make everyone happy, my dear. That'd be impossible. There will always be someone whose interest will conflict with another, and by making one person happy, you'd likely make another sad."_

_Frisk almost winced. "I don't want to make anyone sad."_

_Chara exhaled impatiently. "You will, and you would be a fool to wish otherwise. It is inevitable as the sun would rise after it falls."_

_Frisk dropped their head further, tears coming on as they thought on Chara's harsh words. Was it true? Will they make people sad by helping others? How sad will they be? Will they be mad?_

_Will they come and hurt them?_

" _What do I do?" They asked, their voice small._

_Chara's answer was simple. "Accept it, of course. The faster you do, the faster you will be able to move on."_

" _Move on to what?" Frisk furrowed their brows in confusion._

_They felt the ghostly hand gently life them up, and was met with Chara's kind smile._

" _To help them of course." The ghost replied. "You will help people, and make others sad and angry. Then, you'll just help them too. And the people after them, and the ones after them." A small giggle escaped their lips, putting a little warmth in Frisk's heart. "What cursed life you have, to forever struggle to help those around you. You will never succeed, and yet your life will be more fulfilled than anyone on this earth. In that aspect, I suppose you are blessed too."_

_Frisk stared, unsure of how to take in the words. "Is… Is that a good thing?"_

" _Oh absolutely." Chara quickly reassured. "Why, I think it is most admirable, in fact. No creature I've met in my life, or death, have been as persistently kind as you have been. You are…" They frowned, a flash of sadness flickering over their expression before Frisk could notice. They patted the child again. "You are a good child. Do not ever think otherwise."_

_Frisk stared at Chara for a long moment, before pulling their lips to a beaming smile. "Th… Thank you."_

_Chara nodded in response. "Do not ever give up. I know you won't, but it appears that you need to be encouraged at times, and I am happy to talk some sense into you. I so rarely get to do that you see." With that the ghost stood up and offered their hand. "Now come, let us move on. And do not worry if we run into another fight. I will be there to help you out, as always."_

" _Thank you." Frisk said again as they took their hand. Chara's ethereal skin was cold, yet somehow comforting. "I'll always be with you too, you know?"_

" _Hmph." The ghost smirked, then turned to them with a light scowl. "If this is the part where you hug me, I must warn you that you really shouldn't. If you even try to spread your arms wide, I'll throw you off a bridge, is that understood?"_

_A delighted giggle echoed out Waterfall's dank cavern as the pair made their to New Home hand in hand._

...And it echoed through Frisk's mind too, soothing their thumping heart as the memories faded away.

For several minutes, the child lay there on the dirty bed of dry, dead leaves, thinking, reminiscing.

They didn't know when it started, but tears began clouding their vision, and they let it flow freely down their face. They cried, burying their face into their knees and letting out all of their sorrow and frustration in a form of quiet sobs and sniffles. They cried for their memories; for all the events that had past; all the good, the bad, and the silly; for all those wonderful times that will never be again.

After what seemed like hours, they blinked away their misty eyes, sniffed, and ended up focusing back on the exit on the far end of the chamber.

Slowly, they unfurled their limbs and stood up on shaky legs. Once they had their balance right, and felt that they could walk without crumbling like a poorly built sandcastle, they closed their eyes and felt for their partner within them. It was feint now, but their connection was still there, Chara's fear and confusion still radiating in their soul like an invisible splinter.

They turned their head towards their Home, their thoughts drifting to their mother as they smelt the thick, comforting aroma of the Butterscotch Cinnamon pie being made. It would have been so easy to forget all this and walk back into the house, take a slice of pie as thanks and leave to New Home without Chara in tow.

" _Do not ever give up..."_

Frisk swallowed and turned back towards the passage way ahead. They took in a long, deep breath.

"No." They exhaled. "I won't."

Frisk moved forward with little hesitation, and marched off into the Ruins, each step filled with determination.

* * *

"Man, and when I tried to give him a donut, he just ran away. I mean who does that? Oh, turn left here."

Chara complied without question, their bored gaze turned to the the bland grey rock sitting in the the corner of the road. They didn't wish to be rude, but they had stopped listening to the flower's blabbers about half an hour ago. He must have been quite lonely indeed. They felt like a door to door salesperson who'd been unlucky enough to knock on the door of an elderly lady who'd been living alone in the family house for the past ten years.

_The first talking plant I've ever met and it doesn't know when to shut up. Is it ironic? Why, yes!_

"Anyway, I never saw that guy again. Totally rude. Oh, that reminds me, you wouldn't believe this, but this one time-"

_Ugh._

Perhaps they should have declined his initial offer. At least that way they would have been left to think things through in peace. In that aspect, they might even say they preferred the human child's company. As annoying as they were, at least they were silent most of the time, and with just the right adjustment to their throat with a knife, Chara could render them permanently mute.

_Hm, wouldn't that be nice?_ They mused. They could keep the child mute and keep them next to them like a decoration, train them to be a masterful servant who was there when needed, but invisible when not. They were awfully adament about pleasing them already, they would probably heartily agree if they asked them to be their personal slave (Not that they'll get a choice, of course, but it would be polite to ask first).

Oh, the things they could do to the kid. They could dress the child up in a pretty gown, or perhaps a dashing suit. The kid did have the figure for it, not to mention the looks. Maybe they can put them in a sailor's uniform? How adorable that would be, with their puffy baby cheeks and beady brown eyes, wearing a little white sailor's cap with a blue ribbon. Too bad they won't be able to teach them to sing a sailor's song once they mess up their throat. As annoying as their talk of friendship and human kindness were, Chara couldn't deny that they found their timid little voice so endearingly cute. Maybe they can break their mind instead and train them to only talk when asked. They nearly giggled at the thought of the child on stage, twirling about as they tried their best to sing in their little bird like voice.

Then, Chara finally realised what they were doing and quickly forced their upturned lips into a thin line. They peered down at the flower in a hurry and and sighed in relief to find that he was still spewing on with his story with his back turned. Chara took a calming breath, then growled down at themselves.

_Accursed brat._ They hissed internally. The child had invaded their thoughts again, and not in the way they should have. Chara wanted the child gone, not keep them around so that they can dress them up or get them to sing. It would be nice to break the child's spirit, but they knew they would never get away with it under their mother's keen eyes. She would figure it out in an instant that there was something wrong with the kid and that her child was the one responsible for it.

_Oh mother._ They sighed, their heart twisting as they remembered how angry she was to find their misdeeds, how sad she had sounded. If it hadn't been for the child and their rewind ability, Chara was certain that they would have returned to continue their sixty year slumber in the afterlife.

They still couldn't understand why the child had done that. _"I didn't want mum to hate you."_ They had said, but what did that really mean? Why wouldn't they want her to hate them? Chara was horrible to them, beat them and tortured them endlessly. The child had all the cards in that situation. All they had to do was let the events play themselves out, and everything would have been fine for them. So why hadn't they?

" _...I want to be with you..."_

" _...I'm always happy to see you..."_

" _...I'll leave, if you just come with me..."_

" _...Please… I can't imagine my life without you…"_

Chara closed their eyes, letting the darkness sweep away the memories of that fool's desperate pleas.

They couldn't do this. Not now. They weren't ready. They needed more time.

Thankfully, Flowey's cheery voice sliced through their lamentation and brought them back to reality in an instant. "Hey, let's turn left here." He said, sprouting a little leaf at his base and pointing it at the passage ahead.

Chara nodded gratefully and followed through, burying the thoughts of the child deep into the recess of their mind.

The pair walked along the guided path for several minutes with Chara noting the minor details of the archways as Flowey guided them forward while still yammering on without a seeming end. As they walked through the hall, Flowey dug into the ground and appeared sideways on the wall ahead, his body slithering out between the thin creases between the solid bricks.

"Man, have I told you that I'm so glad to have you here?" He exclaimed excitedly.

Chara almost rolled their eyes. _Only a dozen times, my dear._ "And I you. I'm afraid I would be hopeless be lost without your guidance."

"I know, right?" Flowey appeared proud, pushing his upper stem forward as though his was puffing out his non-existent chest. "I mean, I don't know anyone who knows this place better than I do. I know this place like the back of my… uhh… leaves! I'm a great help, right Chara? Right?"

Chara smiled softly at the plant's blatant fishing for compliments, like a little child screaming for love and attention. "You certainly are, dearie. I am sure the other monsters around here wouldn't be as great a help as you."

"Ha! Those morons? Half of them can't tell the difference between left and right. Besides most of them are too distracted with other things to help anyway. If you try to talk to them they'll either run away or speak your ear off about this one really obnoxious obsession they all have. I mean have you _seen_ a Vegetoid go on about carrots? Man, those guys just can't shut up."

_Hello kettle. I'm pot. You're black._ "I can only imagine." Chara smiled politely.

Flowey dug back into the wall as they walked past him, and sprouted back out from the ground ahead. "But hey, you're different. You're an awesome listener, and you don't just focus on one subject. It's totally refreshing."

"Well, I'm glad you're enjoying my company."

"That's an understatement. Hey, let's turn left here!"

Chara's steps didn't falter one bit as they followed through.

They paced ahead, studying the drape of vines decorating the far left wall from the corner of their eyes. The wall had a crack on it as well, a slight fracture that rippled across the purple bricks, drawing a small trident. They hummed in thought, and moved on, heading towards the archway ahead.

"So hey, can I ask some questions?" Flowey popped out of the ground, excited as always.

"Of course. I see why not."

"Awesome! Umm, then, can I ask when the last time you were in Underground? You said everything's changed, so I'm guessing you must have been here before." A leaf tip tapped at his chin. "Wait, but the barrier has existed for… _years._ Does that mean you got past it? Oh my god, did you?!"

"No, unfortunately." Chara chuckled when Flowey's excitement visibly halved. "I haven't technically left the Underground at all. I was just… sleeping. Hibernating, if you will."

The plant looked perplexed. "Huh, I didn't know humans did that."

"Not many do." They brushed off.

"How long have you been asleep for then?"

Chara contemplated on whether to lie or speak the truth. "Sixty years, if I'm to believe." They admitted.

Flowey's jaw visibly slacked. "S… sixty years?"

"I know. I don't look it." They joked. "Hibernation slows down your body's functionality down to an incredibly level. Why I'm probably only a month older than I was before I went to sleep."

"Wow…" Flowey marvelled, obviously believing every single word. "That's awesome! But you don't have any memories of that sixty years then?"

"No. As I said, I was sleeping." _like the dead. Ha. Oh dear, that was quite bad._

"Man, that's rough. You must be having some trouble adjusting then."

"Hmph, now _that_ is an understatement." Chara scoffed bitterly, their mind drifting off to the child again.

"But hey, lucky you met a cool guy like me to show you around, right? I'm being helpful?"

Chara giggled again at the flower's childish antics. "Indeed, you are. You are kind to offer your help like this. You are a very good person."

"Yeah! I am!" Flowey beamed, but suddenly something in his expression shifted, their blossoming smile crumpling into a half frown. "I… I am…" He trailed off, his smile evaporating completely. For the first time in a while, Flowey fell silent.

With a quirk of a brow, Chara stopped and turned to their guide.

"Flowey?" They called out. "Is everything alright?"

The flower didn't answer, but his head drooped down, golden petals sagging as though he'd been rained on. Even without seeing his expression, Chara could tell that he wasn't his earlier happy self. They approached him, crouching down so that they can speak to him closer.

"Flowey?"

The plant jolted at the proximity of the voice. He looked up, and Chara was surprised to find a bead of tear at the corner of his eyes. Flowey smiled again, but anyone could see clear as day that it was greatly forced.

"Aw, shucks. Sorry. I just…" He chuckled dryly. "I just haven't had anyone say that to me in a long time. I forgot how good it felt."

Chara's heart resonated with sympathy for a kindred spirit. "You must have been alone for a very long time."

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I mean, there are lots of monsters around here and all but…" Flowey sniffed. "Hey, do you ever feel like that?"

"Feel like what, dear?" Chara tilted their head.

"That you just can't to talk to anyone?" He elaborated in a voice that low and almost tired. "I've actually been here for… a really long time. Like, a _really_ long time. So long that I only just remembered how long it's really been. I've just been here… by myself… I must have met a hundred different monsters, each with their own unique traits and quirks. A lot of them were interesting in their own rights, but… I've never met anyone that I could just… _talk_ to. Do you ever feel like that? Like… that there's a wall between you and the world?"

Blood red orbs glazed over as their mind wondered off, recalling a distant memory, reliving it scene by sighed. "I _do_ know how it feels, sadly enough."

Flowey chuckled dryly. "Heh. Yeah, it's not really cool is it? I mean, it's not like I don't want to talk to them. I just…." He trailed off, the petals sagging further. He stayed like that for a few seconds, during which Chara left him alone to sort himself out. After a minute of patient waiting, Chara saw Flowey's petals fluff back up, his stem straightening out and face lifting to meet the human happily. "Which is why I'm so glad you're actually here. You're not like the others, and I know that's a bit weird since we've only just met, but I get that… feeling, you know? I feel like with you, I can say everything and anything that I want. It's like... pre-destined or something!" Flowey beamed up at the human excitedly, but then wilted again, his expression turning sad. Afraid. "Hey, umm, can I...? I mean, can we be friends?"

Chara took their time, watching the creature literally wilt with fright under their gaze. It reminded them of how _he_ used to shrink in on himself whenever he got uncertain. _Which was quite often,_ they added fondly.

"Would you like us to be friends?" They asked after some consideration.

"Umm... yeah. I would." Flowey's voice was filled with so much hope, they couldn't help but laugh.

"Very well then, I will be glad to have you as a friend."

The smile that bloomed on Flowey was so warm and bright, like the morning sun. Chara was once again reminded of how Asriel used to do the exact same thing whenever they agreed to play with him. It was familiar and filled the void left in their heart by their brother's death a little.

They motioned Flowey to lead on, and the creature was only too happy to do so. They moved along together as new friends, and walked deeper and deeper into the Ruins without looking back.

* * *

"Oh, I.. I don't know what you're talking about."

"Please, are you sure you haven't seen them go by? There's only like one path they could have taken back."

"I'm sorry. I really haven't. I'm so sorry."

Frisk bit their lips. "Do you know anyone else that may have seen a human then?"

"No..."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Please, please, I don't know anything. Please, leave me alone."

Frisk held off on their next question. The Whimsum looked just about to faint, their tiny arms crossed over their head as though they were being physically abused. They sighed, feeling awful about their rudeness. "Okay, I'm sorry. Thank you for your-"

The monster burst into tears and flew away.

"-time…" Frisk sighed again.

_Well, that went well,_ they thought tiredly. _Now what am I going to do?_

It's probably been an hour by now, and they didn't seem even remotely closer to finding Chara than before. It was strange. They never realised that the Ruin was such a big place. They still knew the area like the back of their hand, but it was clear that the area they were familiar with wasn't the entirety of the Ruins itself.

Their mental connection didn't help much either. Their bond was only ever meant for communicating, not locating, and since Chara had raised a barrier in their mind, probably without even realising it, they couldn't even ask for where they were. Not that they would answer, but it wouldn't hurt to ask.

Frisk frowned at the thought. _Actually, it probably WILL hurt to ask. A LOT if I think about it._

With a frustrated huff they marched deeper into the Ruins, ever so determined to find their partner. It was on their third step forward that they heard a cackling voice yell out, "Part of a complete breakfast!"

They turned towards the sound, and found a triplet of large carrots sitting around in a circle yelling health diet tips at each other.

_Vegetoids!_ Frisk mentally exclaimed and ran up to the monsters with glee. They may have been more vegetables than monsters, but Vegetoids could certainly talk. And anything that knew about what was healthy for you must be smart to some degree, right?

And if they didn't know, they could always just take a piece of them to snack on as comfort food during their search.

"Excuse me, Vegetoids?"

All three Vegetoids swerved towards the child in a snap, their hollow eyes staring like daggers.

"A child!" One exclaimed.

"Children need vegetables like everyone does!" The other continued.

"Part of a complete breakfast!" The last, oddly square shaped carrot finished.

Frisk nearly jumped back. They hadn't expected all three to speak at once like that. They chuckled nervously, suddenly unsure about this encounter.

"Uhh, hi." They greeted, scratching the back of their neck. "I'm looking for a human that may have passed by here. Have you seen them by any chance?"

"A human!" One exclaimed.

"Humans need vegetables like everyone does!" The other continued.

"Part of a complete breakfast!" The last, oddly square shaped carrot leered suggestively at them.

Frisk took a cautious step back. "O… kay, nevermind."

They sighed dejectedly as they walked away. _I guess that one's a dud too._

"I saw a human."

Frisk turned around so fast they almost did a 360. A Loox was standing behind them, their large beady eye fixed on Frisk like glue. They waved at them with their small arm.

"How do?" They gnashed their teeth.

"Did you really? Did you see a human?" Frisk asked, wasting no time in getting to the point.

"Oh yeah, with my own eye." Loox pointed at his lone eye as though it wasn't obvious. "We Eyewalkers don't miss anything with this eye. They came by the place not so long ago, gave everyone who got in their way a big fright. Tried to pick on me too. When I tried to push them around and kindly asked them to give me all their money, they told me to 'begone!' like they own the damn place. I mean, _I'm_ the bully here, not them, the rude little snipe."

Frisk almost laughed at the Monster's screwed logic, before frowning down in surprise. "Wait, they picked on you and you let them go?" Loox was never one to let anyone who bullies them go without a fight.

The monster's eyeball swept to and fro, a jarring movement seeing how it composed eighty percent of their body. When they spoke again, their voice was smaller, almost jittering with nerves, as though frightened that someone might be listening. "Well, the human, you see? They uhh… Had the eyes of a Boss Monster. I mean, Us Eyewalkers don't miss anything with this eye you you know? You don't mess with a Boss Monster on a whim. No sir. Nuh-uh. Bad idea all around."

Frisk clenched at their guts and consciously made sure that they were all still in there, and definitely not spilling all over the floor. "Yeah, I know what you mean."

"Mm, anyway, they walked by this place three times already, all from the same direction. They probably got lost and walked in circles." Loox stopped and scratched their head. "Which is kinda weird now that I think about it."

"Weird? Why weird?"

"Well, when you have a guide with you, you don't really walk around in circles you know?"

Frisk's brow shot up. "A guide?"

"Oh yeah, saw them with my own eye. Us Eyewalkers don't miss anything with this eye you see."

"Y… yes, as you said." Frisk nodded, slightly impatient.

"And even the guide themselves were weird, let me tell you. I thought the human was walking by again and again just talking to themselves. Thought it was a human thing actually. Then I realised there was another voice, which was surprising because I couldn't see anyone. I mean, that's a big deal. Us Eyewalkers don't miss anythi-"

"Don't miss anything with those eye, yes, I got it the first time, thank you." Frisk interrupted, then mumbled an apology for being rude. "Who was the guide?"

"Right, yeah, I found them in the end. Took me awhile. They were travelling through the wall, blended into the surroundings, only popped up when it was necessary. Sneaky bugger, but rest assured, nothing escapes this eye." Loox bragged, then gnashed their teeth again in thought. "It was a flower from what I could tell."

Frisk blanched, their insides twisting in place like angry snakes trapped in a pot. "F… flower?"

"Yeah." Loox nodded their body. "A yellow, talking flower. Weirdest thing. I don't think I've ever seen a monster like that before."

"Did you see where they went?" Frisk asked with an increasingly hurrying tone.

"They were going to the room with the Moldsmals, last time I saw them. Which is uhh… three rooms down that way."

Frisk turned to the direction which the monster pointed at and blanched again. "A-Are you sure?" They asked. The passage way was definitely not the one that led back to Home. They didn't know where that passage went in fact.

"Of course I am. Saw it my own eye didn't I? Anyway, you better be careful if you go there. Them jellies are dumb as bricks. Everyone knows they'll attack you on sight. That flower must be pretty dumb too if they were guiding the Boss Monster human there. They're gonna get in a fight, and I'm betting the jellies aren't going to be alive to tell us how it went in the end... Not that they have the brains to tell anyone anything in the first place, but you know..." Loox shrugged, then looked the child up and down, something finally occurring to them. "Say… you look like you got some money on you. Wanna hand them over before you get hurt?"

Frisk barely spared enough time to say their thanks before they went running off to the direction Loox pointed at.

* * *

"Hey, hey, look at that thing!"

Chara turned to look at what Flowey was pointing at and quirked a brow at it.

"Those are… giant jellies." Chara said, not knowing what else to call the three large lime-green blobs that sat completely immobile in the corner of the room.

"Yeah, yeah, I know! Come on, let's go jump on them!"

Chara lifted an incredulous brow. "Why?"

"Cause this place is _so_ freaking boring, duh."

"' _Duh_ '?" Chara repeated as though the word was from a completely different language. "Is that something one says nowadays?"

Flowey stared at the monarch strangely. "Um, I guess? Look, the word doesn't matter. What I'm getting at is, this whole place is totally boring, and this is the first time I'm seeing those things here! So we should totally go and play!"

"But why jump on them? I don't know if you've noticed, but I must remind you that you are a flower. You cannot jump."

Flowey looked flustered. "Y-yeah. B-But it doesn't mean _you_ can't. Come on, why don't you go and have fun for the both of us!"

"I... do not think you'll find that very entertaining."

"No no! I'm fine! I'm a flower. I don't do things myself most of the time. I make do with what I can get. And having fun through others is my forte!" Flowey winked again, and another broken star flung out of them, even more depressing than the last.

Chara remained unamused. "I'm sorry, dearie, but I really must get back home before supper. I believe we're close anyhow. I think I even recognise this route."

"Come on Chara! Please? It'll be fun!"

" _Come on Chara! Please? It'll be fun! Mum and Dad won't be mad."_

Chara frowned, but suddenly found that they couldn't argue back. After several attempts, they conceded with a sigh. "Ugh, very well. If you so insist."

They approached the jelly thing with some trepidation, suspicious of its presence in the Ruins. It was a tad bit random for it to be here at all, and in such formation. Three identical sized jellos placed in a perfectly straight line, with precise gap in between them as though measured with a fine ruler. It almost felt like a trap of some sort, which begged the question why would anyone use a giant jello of all things to set a trap? The whiff of lime scent it emitted wasn't at all comforting either.

They turned back to Flowey and saw them coax them on with a happy smile, clapping their little leaves in glee. Chara rolled their eyes and continued until they were standing right before the gelatinous mound. The jelly thing jiggled unattractively. Chara turned their head again, and saw Flowey bouncing his head up and down as though he was jumping on the jello himself.

Chara huffed, and climbed the jiggling mound before they could second guess themselves.

The jello didn't break apart the moment they climbed it as they half expected it to. In fact, the substance was quite sturdy, able to support Chara's full weight as they sat on it as though it was a stool. It was more like a balloon, Chara thought as they gave an experimental bounce. A large, green, slightly slimey balloon.

"Hmph, I suppose this isn't so ba-"

Chara's sentence finished prematurely when six magic bullets pierced their body. Two on the thigh, two on the side, and two right through the abdomen.

They would have hit more, had they not jumped off the jello the moment one bullet grazed their skin. They stumbled face first on to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dirt in their wake.

Blood slowly seeped out of the finger sized holes that decorated their body, staining their clothes red.

They slammed their fist down on the ground, and shakily held their head up. Cold sweat was beginning to form on their forehead in waves, their cheeks flushed as they clenched their teeth to hold down the impending roars of pain.

"Oh my god! Chara! Are you okay?!"

Chara whisked their gaze on to the flower in the distance who was swaying left and right, horrified leaves flailing in the air.

"What… is the meaning of this?" They hissed, almost moaned, eyes wide and brows furrowed with barely tamed rage.

"Those aren't jellies!" Flowey screamed. "Oh my god! Ahhh! Ahhh! It's attacking us!"

As if to answer Flowey's distress, the three jellos all began jiggling about all on their own, making wet squelching noises as their gooey body shifted on the dirt ground with life. Three little pieces chipped off each of the main body and flung themselves at Chara in the form of a white magic bullets. Gritting their teeth, Chara forced themselves to ignore the protests of their bleeding limbs, and push on the ground to roll away to the side with a loud grunt.

The bullets struck the blood-soaked soil where Chara had been laying and paved a crater the size of a plate.

_Violent._ Chara thought with shock. They've never had Monsters in the past who attacked others on sight like this. It was practically unheard of. _The world has changed. So how much has its inhabitants?_

Without a second thought, Chara raised their still intact arm with a held breath, hovered it over their bloody abdomen and summoned forth a surge of magic. Within a second the two bullet holes disappeared. They puffed a sigh that wasn't quite completely relieved. Despite the flawless outward appearance, blood stain and a deep ache inside their abdomen remained. It was certainly better than before, but not quite there yet. _I should have had more healing arts lessons with mother instead of going off with the soldiers to train_. They thought, but knew hindsight meant little to the here-and-now.

"Hey, stop it! Leave them alone!"

Chara whisked their eyes towards the voice and found Flowey sprouted next to the jelly creatures, headbutting them with all his might. His attack had all the impact of a flower bud tapping at a gelatinous mold: not very much.

"Fool! Get away from-" Chara tried to warn, but they were too late as the jello monsters suddenly had the flower surrounded and was closing in on him bit by bit.

"What the? What are you doing? Stay away! Stay away from me! Aaah! Aaaahhh! Chara, they're crushing me! They're crushing me! Help! Help!"

Chara didn't need to be told twice. They quickly healed the wounds on their thigh and sides, stood up, and when they felt that they could stay on two feet without falling, they charged at the jellos in a full body slam.

The impact was enough to send one flying into the other two, making them all tumble over and bounce away. Chara immediately fell to their knees, their insides screaming with ache at the sudden, erratic movement. They fell again on to their hands too, and breathed heavily. They looked to the side at Flowey, who was cowering with fear, his leaves covering his ducked head. After a several seconds, he stopped trembling as he realised he weren't being crushed anymore. He looked up, and gasped.

"You saved me." He said in wonder. "You saved me! Alright! Awesome!"

Chara smirked, before suddenly standing up with their hands ablaze and swiped at the air, or more specifically, at the bullets that the large jellies had fired at them once more. The two magics met in the air, and cancelled each other out, vanishing with a quiet ' _pomf'._

"It's not over yet." Chara growled, glaring at the three gelatins that have up-righted themselves and was jiggling towards them again. "Monsters, stop!" Chara boomed. "I do not wish you harm. I have merely mistaken you as inanimate objects, and that was wrong of me. I beg for your forgiveness. There is no need for this violence!"

The three monsters all stopped their jiggles in unison, twisted about as though looking at one another, then all began jiggling again.

"They're not listening!" Flowey panicked. "Hurry, do something! Throw fires at it!"

Chara ignored him and tried again. "I may appear human, but I am a friend of your kind. Your Queen has taken me in as her child, and hence I only seek to better your lives. Please, let us cease this madness."

The jellies seemed to pause, then fired bunch of white particles into the air above. Chara scowled at the creatures, their annoyance clear.

"Oh my god! They're attacking us again!" Flowey screamed, but they ignored him.

The bullets began raining down slowly, all falling down in a straight line, nowhere near where they were. But it was an attack nonetheless, something Chara didn't exactly approve of.

One piece came close to touching their face, and they tapped it away with their magic blade covered hand.

And the instant that they did so, the white ball exploded with a small bang, and being so close it, Chara didn't even have time to realise what had happened before their face was showered with shrapnel.

Their entire body flung down to the ground like a thrown rag doll, trail of blood splashing in their wake.

Suddenly, everything stopped.

There was no more movement, no more sound coming from the gelatin monsters or the fallen monarch.

Flowey stared at their friend, surprised and confused.

Then, his eyes blackened, and his lips stretched into a jagged grin.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: I think the amount of crap I wrote for this chapter adds up to about 30000 words, and now I scrapped most of it. Ah, the life of a writer ;_;**
> 
> **Some editing was involved, but all mistakes are mine.**
> 
> **Please leave a comment if you have the time! :D**
> 
> **Ideas scrapped for this chapter: Flirty Frisk, Charisk Abbot and Costello routine, Spider Cider, and Goat Mum Master Chef Action.**
> 
> **Up next: Frisk arrives at the scene of the crime.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Hi all! As always thank you for the comments, kudos and bookmarks! I wish I took more time working on this chapter, but I've been quite busy these days, so here it is!**
> 
> **Sorry that I haven't responded to any of the comments last time. As I've said, life's been very busy, but let me tell you now: Every comment that you post makes my day. Really, I've been having some terrible days past weeks and just reading your comments makes me feel ten times better. I really, really appreciate it.**
> 
> **This chapter is gonna be a long one, I hope you all enjoy!**

* * *

Frisk gasped.

An odd, ripping sensation shot through their chest, one that they had felt many times over during their 'fight' with Chara. A surge of sick fear crawled forth, and they forcibly pushed it back, ensuring that they were still sane, still functional.

With a pounding heart, they pushed themselves forward, going from their initial light jog into a full blown sprint.

It was Flowey. Of course it was Flowey. Frisk couldn't believe they had forgotten about him. How in the world did they forget about time manipulating flower demon that was bent on making the world his playground?

_Because I was too busy getting tortured and murdered, that's how._

Frisk groaned but didn't stop to slap themselves over for their mistakes. Their primary goal was to reach Chara ASAP. As touching as sibling reunion may be, having those two meander together freely about was like putting a candle underneath the drapes, a recipe for disaster.

_Chara, can you hear me?_ Frisk called out in their mind. _If you can, don't listen to that flower. Don't do anything he asks or says. He's dangerous. He's not what he seems._

No answer.

Frisk tensed their jaw, reached for their back and pulled out their trusty wooden stick in their tightly clenched fists. With a stoic scowl, they ran as fast as their legs could take them, right down the passageway the Loox had pointed towards.

* * *

# Chapter 5 

The mad laughter shook the air, shattering the usual calm tranquility the Ruins had maintained for years without remorse. Black eyes leered down at the human body in mirth, white teeth bared in a cruel grin.

"I can't believe you just got offed by a Moldsmal. A _Moldsmal!_ Who the hell does that?!" Flowey cackled, pointing a mocking leaf at Chara's unmoving form. There was a puddle of blood forming around their head where the Moldsmal's little magic bomb had no doubt blown off half of their face. Flowey thought about flipping his 'friend' over to marvel at their undoubtedly gory state, but decided that the sight of them with their face down, kissing the dirt was entertaining enough. "Man, and to think that I was thinking of asking you to join me to have some fun. Now _that_ would have been a mistake." Suddenly, his smile turned into a peeved sneer. "You didn't even _think_ to hurt those brainless puddings, did you? I didn't expect you to be so stupid, _Chara_. I thought you'd be different. Shows just what I know, huh?"

The body remained still, silent and immobile.

He smirked again, shrugging. "Eh, whatever right? I don't know how you came back, but since you've apparently become a total idiot after all these years, I think I'll just take your soul and be done with it." Tendrils of green weed slithered forth from the ground, surrounding the human, leisurely encroaching on them as though savouring the moment. The flower creature sprouted next to the body and bent down, leaning down until he was peering at Chara's bloodied face sideways with a sinister grin. "This must be fate, you know?" He chuckled lowly. "After everything that's happened to us, it just comes right back to this situation. It's time for us to become one again. And this time, I will do everything that I refused to do last time, and so much more."

Chara's body began glowing red, and from the center of their back, a little heart began to emerge.

"N-no! Stop!"

The red magic dissipated in a snap, and the swarm of magical plants snaked back into the earth. The soul receded back into Chara's body, hidden once more.

Flowey snapped his up with bared teeth, then schooled the menacing expression into a happy smile.

"Oh, howdy there! Can I help you?" He greeted the newcomer until he suddenly realised, this child was a human too. The friendly smile pressed into a sly, knowing leer, and his chirpy voice took a dark turn. "Oooh wait a minute. I know you." He began, his tone slow and giddy. "You're the one, aren't you? You're the one who overrode my will over this world. Well, how d'you do?"

Frisk didn't even look at him, just stood still with wide eyes glued on Chara's dead still form.

"What, this?" He slapped the monarch's head hard with their leaf, making Frisk flinch. "Yeah, I killed them for you. Went out the stupidest way too: By a Moldsmal. Can you believe that?"

Again, Frisk didn't answer, but their grip on their stick visibly tightened, clenching so hard that their knuckles turned white. "You... what?"

"Oh, no need to thank me." Flowey continued, oblivious to the child's rapidly paling face. "They were hurting you right? Twenty seven times, if I counted correct. Man, that was probably real brutal, but don't worry, they're dead and gone now. They can't hurt you any more. If anything, I'm sorry you weren't here to see it happen. I'm sure it would have been great to really get back at them, eh?"

Frisk's eyes, glistening with tears, turned to the flower in a deadly glare. "Wha… What did you do? What _did_ you _do_?" They ground out, their voice small, angry, yet afraid.

Flowey quirked his brow. "What? Are you deaf? I said I killed them. They're dead."

Frisk snapped their sorrow filled gaze back to the body. _No. Chara, come on. Please, wake up. You can't go like this. This is too soon._

Flowey stared, confused, not understanding why the human child looked so distraught, as though their whole world was crumbling down around them. He volleyed his gaze back and forth between the child and the body on the ground. A few puzzles clicked together in that moment, and he started to cackle lowly in cruel amusement. "Wait. Wait wait wait. Wait. Don't tell me you're -what?- _mourning_ over this idiot?"

Frisk's eyes flashed with indignant anger. "Don't call them that." They hissed much to Flowey's amusement.

"Pfft-ha! Seriously? Are you seriously defending this piece of crap?" He snickered. "Did dying so many times give you brain damage or something?"

Frisk glared for a moment longer before clenching their eyes shut, reaching inside them for their power, that urge and will to escape their reality and undo whatever horrible event that has happened.

"That won't help you know?"

Their eyes snapped open wide, and Flowey giggled fiendishly.

"You just tried to reload, didn't you?" He continued, "Well, I hate to tell you this, but I'll remember what happened. I have at least that much power within me to do that. You saved before you came here. I know you did. I sensed it, and I know exactly where I was when you did it. Chara died without finding out who I was, and if you reload, I'll just lead them down this same path again and get them killed, over and over and over. You'll never reach us in time."

_But Chara will remember getting killed._ Frisk spoke internally. _And if they remember, they'll avoid getting into the same situatio-_

"Oops, I forgot. Chara has some determination too, don't they?"

Frisk blanched and Flowey grinned.

"Oh yeah, I can feel it in their soul. They'll remember getting killed by those Moldsmals, won't they? And they'll try to warn me, or steer me away to protect me, never realising that I am the one who is guide them to their death. What an idiot." His face morphed into an image of Toriel, perfect in its imitation, yet lacking all of the warmth and sincerity that the image should have held. "We became friends, you know? I offered to help, painted myself as some silly, clueless monster who just wants to play around. I asked if we could be friends and they accepted almost immediately. Wasn't that nice of them? Isn't that just the sweetest thing?"

A pang of jealousy shot through Frisk's heart, but they pushed the emotion aside, knowing now really wasn't the time for it.

"They trust me." Flowey continued, speaking an octave higher than normal. "They think I'm a lonely flower who hasn't had anyone to talk to in years, boo hoo hoo." His sad frown and trembling lips melted into a twisted grin. "Stupid, am I right? How gullible can you get? So go ahead, kiddo. Reload. It'll be interesting to see how Chara acts when they come back. Will they explain what happened? Will they try and subtly guide me away from here? There are so many other things around here that I can kill them with. I'm _so_ curious about what's gonna happen. Oh man, I'm getting so excited just talking about it. Come on kid, reload! Reload! I want to kill Chara again! I want to see how many times I can trick and betray them! I want to see it all! Come on! Do it! DO IT!"

Frisk stepped back as Flowey burst into a loud, sinister guffaw, a cold noise that sent sickening shivers down their spine. They debated to themselves on whether or not to LOAD. Flowey was correct in saying that Frisk had created a new SAVE earlier, just before they left Home to be exact. It wouldn't be wise to just rewind back when there was so little they could go with to find Chara afterwards. Flowey would probably just relocate as he said, and hurt Chara in all sorts of different way. Maybe he'll even have time to steal Chara's soul at some point. Strategically speaking, it would be wise to keep this timeline going and see where this all goes.

But there was a small tidbit of information that made that choice a bit difficult to go along with: Chara was _dead._ Any situation, no matter how terrible or disadvantaged, was better in comparison. Some hope was better than none afterall.

They had to reload at some point, there was no doubt about that. But how could they make sure that they can warn Chara about Flowey afterwards? Chara still had their mental barrier around them, and probably wouldn't be lowering them when they reset. They needed more time to think about this, and time was exactly what they didn't have right then.

"Well? Whatcha waiting for? Not gonna reload? Should I just take Chara's soul then?" Flowey spat. "I'm so tempted right now. I can feel it inside them, just sitting there, waiting for me to take it." Two spiked vines appeared from the ground and caressed Chara's unmoving form.

Frisk's protectiveness surged and they gripped their stick tight to stop themselves from rushing forward blindly. "W-Why are you doing this?" They stuttered out, trying to stall for time.

It worked, and the vines lifted off the body. "What, seriously? Did you seriously just ask me that? This is the seventh soul, you idiot! If I take this, I'll become so strong, I'll finally be able to take on that stupid old man and take the other six he saved up. Then, I'll become an all powerful being and this world will become my very own playground. I've never done any of that before, you know? I want to see what happens. I _need_ to see what happens! I need to see it so bad I'm about to lose my MIND!" Flowey burst into a small giggle, their smile impossibly wide, eyes unhinged. "And I won't let you or anyone else stop me!"

The vines began glowing red and surrounded Chara like a blanket. For the second time, Chara's little red soul floated out of their back and hovered into the air.

Frisk rushed forward, but was instantly stopped when another garden of green vines shot out of the ground, roped around their arms and legs, and held them up in the air like a doll. They struggled in place, tugging at their bindings with all their puny might, but the vines were wrapped tight, and any excessive movements only caused the needle like thorns to dig into their skin. They were stuck, stuck and helpless.

Flowey snorted at them and turned his attention back to the soul. He marveled at the sight, openly gaping at it in giddy wonder. Then, he suddenly blinked, and began cackling mockingly.

"Pfft-HA! Oh my god, seriously?" He guffawed. "This idiot only had ten freaking HP? No wonder they got killed by a god damn Moldsmal! They have about the same durability as a freaking Whimsum! How useless can you get?!"

Frisk struggled once more, twisted against their bindings until they felt drops of blood running down their wrist and shin. But they couldn't get free. They stopped, realising they weren't going to be able to break out of Flowey's grasp in time.

_Time. Time's up. I need to reload. NOW._

They closed their eyes again and reached inside them for their SAVE file.

They grabbed on to it, held it in their heart.

_I'm quitting... I don't want this timeline... It's time to reload._

They chanted their little mantra, and allowed the world to fade into black.

* * *

_Reload, and I will carve your eyes out and feed it to the dogs, do you understand?_

Frisk's eyes startled open, the darkness clouding their mind vanishing into nothing. They released their SAVE file from their mental grasp, and at the same time, heard a strangled gasp escaped Flowey's throat.

They whisked their gaze over to Chara's supposedly dead body, and found the monarch's bloody hand wrapped around Flowey's stem in a tight, vice like grip.

"What... the hell?!" The flower grunted between breaths, his face one of shock and anger. He tried all his might to escape, but just like with Frisk before, he did not have the strength to free himself.

"A lesson about humans, dearie..." Chara's sing sang voice almost giggled. The once immobile body shifted and raised their bloodied face from the dirt, their red stained teeth bared in a sinister grin. "Always check for a pulse before assuming they're dead."

Chara's entire body erupted in white flames, burning the surrounding vines away in an instant. Their soul, now released from the vine's magic, sunk back into it's owner without a sound.

The fire spread out to each of Chara's limbs as though covered in oil, running quickly over their shoulder, elbow and rushing over to their hand. Before it reached the wrist, however, Flowey used the blood covering the monarch's hand as lubricant and slipped out by burrowing into the ground, narrowly avoiding getting burnt alive.

He reappeared a good feet away, breathing heavily with adrenaline as he stared at the monarch with barely tamed rage. "What... the... hell...?"

Chara slowly stood up, taking care to stand with one leg at a time, putting out a searching hand in front of them as they did. When they were fully standing, they straightened out their back, and turned their head back and forth. Their entire face was covered in red, and Frisk quickly realised in horror that they had no eyes, only a shredded mess of flesh remained where the red orbs should have been.

_Chara..._ They called, even their inner voice gasping in shock. _You… your eyes, they're..._

"Yes, it appears I am blind." Chara clicked their tongue, sounding mildly annoyed, like they'd just realised they've spilled tomato sauce over their shirt. "How inconvenient. Let me just…"

Without another word, they raised a glowing yellow hand over their face, and removed it a good ten seconds later. The fleshy mess was all but completely gone, revealing a set of sparkling red eyes in its wake.

"There." They smiled. "Still hurts to see, but it'll do for now." They began searching about and finally found Frisk who was still strung up by Flowey's spiked vines. They scoffed. "Do you ever get into a situation where you are NOT about to be horribly tortured by others?"

It was meant to be a jibe, but Frisk smiled brightly, their entire being flushing with relief.

Chara must have felt it through their connection because in that instant, their smirk fell, and they grumbled to themselves, muttering about how insufferable the simpering child was.

"H… how?" Flowey, finally snapping out of his shock, stuttered.

Chara grin down at him, sly and smug. "First rule of magical combat, dearie: Always check your enemy's STAT." Their grin turned impossibly cold, freezing even. "It helps you avoid getting over your head."

Flowey visibly shivered. "B-but that magic bomb, it went off right next to your head! Half of your face got blown off!"

If possible, Chara's grin turned wider. "The thing about magical attacks is that the more you distant yourself from your emotions, the less it'll hurt you. And I don't wish to sound a braggart, but I am rather proficient at doing that. Magic bullets have a hard time hurting me."

"But what about the first attack? Those bullets went right through your thighs!"

Chara whipped up their hand and checked their nails, testing their eyesight by moving them back and forth. "As I said, one must distance themselves from their emotions to not be hurt. I wasn't prepared for those 'Moldsmals' to attack me like that when I sat on them. I had assumed you were up to something, but I still honestly believed those things were inanimate."

"You... suspected me?" Flowey tensed and Frisk was sure that he would have blanched if his face wasn't already coloured pure white.

"I did." Chara giggled refinedly. "I may be terrible with my directions, but I'm no fool. One doesn't take a left turn five times in a row, dear, unless they were climbing a tower which the Ruins are certainly not. You were taking us around in circles. I had merely assumed it was because you were lonely and wanted more time together. How wrong I was, you sneaky little soul snatcher."

"And you've been listening." Flowey sneered.

"Correct again. I was awake from around the time this child got here, in fact. Because of course its their annoying mug that wakes me up from a blunt trauma to the head."

_Does this mean that I'm always on your mind?_ Frisk asked, their eyes twinkling with small joy.

Chara raised an incredulous brow and shook their head. "Alright, first of all, that doesn't make much sense. Secondly, for goodness sake, you _just_ don't know when to give _up_ , do you?"

_Nope._ Frisk giggled, then stopped to gaze warmly at their partner. _I'm so glad you're alright._

Chara stared back for a moment before they snorted out loud, crossing their arms over their chest. "Only you would think that, dear."

Frisk tilted their head. _Not even mum?_

Chara grumbled, but before they could answer, the child screamed, their arms starting to bleed as spiny vines dug into their flesh.

"Don't you ignore me!" Flowey growled as he used the vines to drag Frisk towards them. "I said I was gonna take a human soul and I meant it! If I can't have yours Chara, I'll make do with what I can get!"

Chara rolled their eyes, then dashed forward at a frightening speed. They swung their arm forward in an arc, and with a bright flash of metal, the vines holding Frisk's one side was cut loose, the detached part wilting away lifelessly while the part still rooted to the ground snaked back into the earth.

Frisk screamed again, their whole weight now held on by their right side only, forcing the thorns to dig deeper into their skin.

"Please, be quiet." Chara huffed and sliced the remaining vines off.

Frisk fell to the ground daintily, their limbs weak from all the pin-prick wounds they received. A shadow fell over them, and they groggily looked up to see the monarch looming.

"You…" They beamed. "You saved me."

"I suppose, you could say that." Chara smiled, their eyes wide and empty. They held up their hand, a gleaming metal blade shining in their grasp. "Time to die."

Frisk didn't even have the time to register what was said before Chara brought down the dagger on their head.

* * *

There was a loud clang, a crisp echo of metal hitting metal, like two blades meeting in the air.

Chara raised their brow even as their arm flung backwards from the force of the impact. They tilted their head, studied their blade which was ringing faintly from the sheer force of the clash, then turned around with a cold smile. "Flowey, darling, why would you do that?"

Flowey glared at them, removing the protective shell of thick vines he formed around Frisk. "That's what I want to ask you." He hissed, his eyes black and teeth bared. "Why did you just do that?"

"To force a reset, of course. The kid dies, time resets, you don't get the soul, and I get to kill you at my full strength." Chara shrugged. "But honestly, I'm doing it because my eyes still hurt. Going back in time where I never got injured seem to be the best medicine, no?"

"I… I could have reloaded for you…."Frisk whispered, shell-shocked over what had just almost happened. "If you'd just asked..."

"Oh, but where's the fun in that?"The monarch giggled, making the child shiver at the bone chilling noise.

A bead of sweat dropped down Flowey's forehead, but still he forced his lips to a grin in a show of bravado. "Heh… You're kinda sick, you know that?"

"So I've been told." Chara pressed a delicate hand over their chest and bowed slightly. Then, without warning, turned around and swung their dagger at Frisk's head once more.

A wall of thorny rose stems erupted from the ground to intervene, and at the same time, Frisk put their cut up limbs to use and jumped back away from both of their assailants.

Chara's arm flung back again, their blade repelled by Flowey's steel like vines, and they quickly used their other hand to burn away the plant matter before it slammed down to crush them.

Their blade was ringing again, vibrating as through crying in agony. They clamped their numbing palm tight around the grip, and muted the ringing halfway.

"Quite sturdy, your vines." They commented, turning their head just enough to gaze at Flowey from the corner of their eyes. "Well done. I'm quite impressed."

Flowey didn't answer and simply glared, his whole body tense in clear anticipation for the monarch's next move. Chara grinned at the sight, but didn't move to strike again.

"Child!" They called out suddenly, making both Frisk and Flowey jump with start. "Do be a dear and reset, won't you? The flower will be a bit of a bother, so I am willing to forego with my bit of fun just this once."

Frisk pressed their lips thin at the order, relief instinctively filling them at the reassurance that they won't be hurt. Their rational mind, however, forced them to pause and think about the order instead of like a trained lapdog. They stood their ground, their legs slightly apart and arms tense at their sides. They looked at the monarch straight in the eyes, suppressed the urge to run and hide in a hole, and said in a firm tone, "No."

"No?" Chara raised their brow, not angry, but no longer smiling either.

Frisk felt their heart stop at the quizzing tone, but held their ground, "No."

Chara hummed, amused. "Hmm, interesting. And may I ask why not?"

_Because you'll kill him._ The child shifted their gaze warily.

Chara followed their line of sight and turned around to find the flower creature glaring up at them. They whipped back to the child. _And?_ They raised their brow.

_You can't. We need him alive._

_Do we now? And for what, may I ask?_

Frisk hesitated. _... I don't think now's the time to discuss this._

_Oh, but of course._ Chara scoffed. Well, it's _an interesting proposition. But I'm afraid I'll have to decline. The flower dies, now._

_No, you have to listen to me!_

_I don't have to do-_ The monarch stopped and casually stepped to the side to avoid the vines that speared out from the floor to the ceiling. "You need to work on your sneak attacks, Flowey dear. I could feel the ground tremble long before you did that."

Flowey grinned in response. "I wasn't aiming for you."

Chara whipped their eyes to the child who was now actively dodging the snaking vines that writhed about to grab hold of them.

"I just need one human soul, remember?! All I need is the kid! I don't need to deal with you!"

The number of vines multiplied to a dozen, and while Frisk managed to scurry their way around a few, one managed to coil around their arm and violently yanked them back, causing them to fall flat on the ground where the rest of the ropes began wrapping around them.

"Ah, but you do need the child alive, no?" Chara grinned. "You can't take their soul if time resets and they're not here."

They threw a ball of flames at Frisk without a pause. The vines stood up to protect them, but once caught on fire, the magic began to spread, eating away at the plant matter like a fuse. Flowey quickly released Frisk before the flames got to them too, saving their life with only a moment to spare.

Frisk was tossed to the floor where they only had a moment's rest before they had to leap back to a stand.

Chara's blade struck the ground, narrowly missing their head.

Without pause, Chara dashed to the side, and swung again at Flowey who escaped again by slipping back into the earth.

"This will all be so much easier if you'd just reset." The monarch sighed again. "Can't you see that he is trying to do worse than just kill you? He's not a monster, dear. Monsters may lie, but they don't manipulate. That thing is a pest. And pests must be exterminated."

"You can't." Frisk shook their head vehemently. _I told you, we need him alive._ "Look, I don't need to reset. We can just run away. I know the way back, and you can keep him from chasing us using your magic!"

"I thought you'd have realised this by now, dearie: I don't work with humans."

"Can't you just give me a chance just this once?" Frisk hissed, their frustration obvious.

"Hmm, let me think. No. Can you please just reset, now?"

"I'm not going to reset."

"You, child, are infuriatingly stubborn."

"Yeah? Well, so are you! _"_

"Stop ignoring me!"

Chara and Frisk both turned their gaze just in time to see the series of white particles flying their way.

"Friendliness pellets!" Frisk yelled.

"I beg your pard-""Dodge!"

They slammed Chara with a full bodied tackle and tumbled away from the pellets together. They rolled on the floor a few times, and eventually came to a halt with Chara on top, their palms pressed onto the ground on each side of Frisk's head. The two stared at each other just for a moment before snapping their head towards where the pellets had gone to.

The little white pieces struck one of the purple walls making up the room, and the moment it did so, a large crater the size of a full sized door appeared, then burst out in a large explosion that shook the entire room. Debris flew about as the outer layer of the wall crumbled apart, creating a ten feet wide hole that revealed the thick compressed soil behind the coloured bricks.

The two children shrunk away from the blast, then openly stared, stunned at the amount of destruction the tiny pellets had caused.

Frisk turned to their partner in distress. "Those things will kill us in one hit!"

"Kill _you_ perhaps." Chara scoffed. "It'll just be mildly annoying for me."

"This is not the time to brag!" Frisk curled up, gripped Chara with their legs and threw them to the side.

More pellets flew by over their head.

Chara rolled to a stand, just about the same time as Frisk, and was promptly swallowed up by a wave of thorny vines.

"Chara!" Frisk cried, helplessly watching the vines compress inwards with an obvious intent to kill.

With a flash of blue and orange, the ball of vines cleaved in two, and the monarch emerged from the hollow shells unharmed, both hands glowing with magic.

"That was a very poor attempt. Do better." They sighed and threw their flames at Flowey and Frisk at the same time.

Frisk rolled to the side while Flowey burrowed away.

The plant reappeared in the same spot a moment later. "How's _this_ for better?!"

Vines far thicker than any ones prior shot out from the floor just before Chara's foot and whipped at them with it's axe like thorns. The monarch was barely fazed, their face bored as they swung their magic blade in a vertical arc, parting the vine in two.

_Unimpressive,_ they were about to deadpan, but in that moment their eyes widened at the sight of the friendliness pellets that appeared behind the cleaved vines, only a moment away from striking them with their deceptively benign form.

The vines were a diversion.

_Sneaky._ Chara huffed, annoyed. _But still not good enough._

They immediately let their emotions run cold, emptied their entire being from everything the monsters had taught them, and soaked in the thoughts of their life back on the surface, their life with the humans.

The pellets approached, and Chara struck them away with a swift backhand.

_Unimpressive._ They wanted to say again, but then, suddenly, the base of their pinkie snapped at an angle with a loud crack, and their words were replaced by a loud grunt of pain. They brought their damaged hand close, hissing.

Flowey chortled at them. "High DF doesn't make you invulnerable, you idiot! You only have ten freaking HP on you! Instead of hitting you once, I just have to hit you ten times. How's _that_ for better?!"

Chara scowled but didn't have anything to say back. He was correct afterall. No matter how strong they were, there was very little they could do about their physical limitation. _But ten HP? I thought I had more than that._

"Chara, catch!"

They looked up at the child's voice, just in time to see a little ribbon shaped object fly towards them. They caught it with their good hand and examined the tiny object.

It was a piece of candy.

They leered up, then popped it in their mouth without a moment of hesitation.

Their wound immediately began to glow and, soundlessly, their broken bones snapped back in place. When the glow died down, Chara quickly flexed their fingers and twisted them left and right. Their hand was good as new.

"Thank you, child." They nodded gratefully. "From your left."

Frisk complied and lunged forward as though through instinct, avoiding a whip of grasping stems from catching them.

"Good reflex." Chara complimented. "Now stay still."

Shots of magic flames came at their head and Frisk wasted no time lunging to the side this time.

Chara growled exasperatedly, flicking off the fire in their newly healed hand. "Ugh, will you please stay still? One moment, you listen to me without a second thought, then you go completely against my wishes the next. Are you going to listen to me or not?!"

Frisk whipped around and glared at them openly, their eyes wide and cheeks flushed with boiling anger. "I'll listen to you when it doesn't get me killed!" They yelled and they scrambled away from a web of vines clawing at them.

"You're going to come back anyhow, why do you _care_?!" Chara yelled back, then from the corner of their eyes saw a spray of pellets coming their way.

"I'm doing this because I care about you!"

The two children shot forward, each away from their respective danger, and met in the middle, both glaring at each other in frustration.

"I do this because I care about you." Frisk repeated, grinding out each word between clenched teeth, glaring daggers at their partner.

"That doesn't make any sense." Chara growled back.

"It does. Everything I say and do. I'm doing it all for you. I only want you to be happy. I just want to see you smile every day."

Chara growled and shook their head. "No. You are lying. You cannot care for me."

"And why not?" Frisk growled back, almost challenging them.

The two separated again with Chara swinging their blade while Frisk pushed away with all their might. Spears of vines pierced the air where they had just been standing.

"I am a horrible person." Chara said simply, then threw magic fire again at both Frisk and Flowey.

"You are." Frisk ducked under the flames and hopped over a rush of vines.

"I have hurt you beyond the human limit." Chara dashed forward and sliced apart the plant matter that were heading towards the child.

"You _have_." Frisk leapt over an eruption of thorny vines and snapped their finger at the incoming pellets.

"You should feel sick just by the sight of me!" Chara slapped the pellets away, and stomped forward with rage filled steps.

"I _DO_!" Frisk stepped forward as well, and almost slammed into the monarch, glaring at the blood red orbs with all their might. "But that doesn't mean I can't care about you!"

"Then there is something seriously wrong with you, child!" Chara roared. "Get this through your thick head: We are _NOT_ friends!"

"I KNOW WE'RE NOT!" Frisk roared back with an equal force, if not greater. "I know we're not! I KNOW we're not!" Their words were swallowed by rising sobs, eyes tearing up, cheeks flushed and teeth bared as they hissed each words with force. "How can we be? After _everything_ that you've done to me. How can we be friends? How can we be _anything_? I _know_ we're not friends. I _know_ we're _not_."

Chara stared, watching the child crack under their anger and beginning to sniffle and sob even as they tried their best to maintain their glare.

"Then why do you pursue me?" They asked, their voice low and calm. For once, their words weren't filled with spite or hate, just curiosity. "I am not the Chara you knew, don't you understand? I will never be the one you want."

Brown eyes folded shut, their expression no longer filled with the fire of anger and frustrations, only sadness.

"... No. No, you won't. We'll never be what we were. We'll _never_ have what we had between us ever again." The child's voice was hushed, subdued as though it was all dawning upon them now, as though the knowledge had been there, but the full impact of the truth was only just hitting them. "Our bond is gone… My Chara is gone."

Chara stared down at the child pitifully, knowing their expression for what it was, having seen it many times before. It was the one of resignation, the point where people gave up their friendly demeanor and revealed what was truly underneath all of their so called 'humanity'. They expected the child to cry, to sniffled, and sob, and weep as they mourned for their loss.

But they did none of that.

Only a single bead of tear fell down their cheek before they opened their eyes again, deep brown orbs twinkling with that surge of hope that never seemed to leave.

"But…" They started again, their deep brown eyes staring unwaveringly into Chara's own, not smiling, not crying, not laughing, not raging. Just… hopeful. Determined. "But that doesn't mean that we can't be friends again. And I'm willing to try. I'm willing to give you that chance. If you'll just give me one as well."

Chara stood still, gazing right into Frisk's unwavering eyes with a blank expression.

_How can you say that?_ They wanted to ask, but couldn't bring themselves to speak. Their throat had closed tight from a wave of strange emotions that filled their heart.

" _You're important to me."_

" _I want to be with you."_

" _I can't imagine my life without you."_

" _Please, trust me."_

Chara didn't understand. They couldn't understand. No words came to mind, and there was no time think of one.

They took a quick glance at the corner of their eyes, and quickly grabbed Frisk by the throat and held them up to the side like a shield.

Then, after a moment, they frowned, growled loudly, and threw the child aside.

Frisk stumbled back from the force, but recovered just in time to see a handful of friendliness pellets fly slowly by, just where they had been standing moments ago. Their eyes followed the bullet, then turned, stunned, back to the monarch whose face was clouded with a harsh storm.

They spoke in a quivering tone. "Y… you-"

" _No_." Chara snapped sharply. "Whatever it is you think, I just tried to use you as a shield. I'm… I'm not..."

Frisk stared at their stuttering form, and slowly smiled. "Th… thank you."

Chara glowered at them, their lips sealed tight.

Suddenly, Frisk expression fell into one of shock, and they turned back to the direction the bullets had flown at. Then, without another word, they bolted into a mad dash to chase after the deadly pellets.

"What? What are you-?" Chara began, but was silenced when they saw what the child was running towards.

There, at the corner of the room where the pellets were headed for, three large jelly creatures huddled in a group, jiggling, no, _trembling_ in fear. The child had already reached them, and was trying to get them to move, yelling at them, and then physically trying to push them away. Frisk was much too small and weak to lift even one side of the monster off the ground, however. None of them were going to make it at this rate.

"Come on, guys! You have to move! Now!" Frisk yelled as they pushed at the Moldsmal with all their might, but all the monsters did was jiggle in place, either too scared or too unintelligent to listen. Frisk spared a glance towards the coming bullets and saw that they were now only seconds away from impact. There was no more time. They quickly came to a decision.

They latched onto one of the Moldsmals, the one sitting at the front, in the widest hug they could manage, and tried their best to cover the entire monster with their body. They slammed their eyes shut and braced themselves.

The pellets hit them with a series of loud pop, a sound akin to that of a hail hitting a thin rooftop. They had to admit, it didn't hurt all that much. They supposed it happened from time to time, when the damage to their body came so suddenly and was so severe that their brain could not hope to process it. It was a blessing really, it meant that they could die, drifting off peacefully without constantly writhing in agony.

Their grip on the monster slacked, and they slid to their now weak knees.

_Chara…_ They called out with their last bit of energy. They didn't want to reset, but it appeared that it was now inevitable. They just hoped that Chara would heed their warnings about Flowey and tried their best to stay away from him and not get into a fight.

They closed their eyes and waited for their mind to drift off to oblivion.

* * *

_If you have time to be dramatic, you might as well help me, you fool._

Frisk's eyes snapped open again, the calm, floating feeling vanishing faster than a popped bubble. They turned their head side to side, finding all the Moldsmals still alive, then roamed down to their body which, to their surprise, was not harmed in any way. No blood, no broken bones and certainly no missing bits.

Confused, they turned around to find their partner, then gasped when they saw them standing right behind them, the coldness of their blood red eyes accentuated by their pale skin.

"Ch… Chara?" They stuttered.

The monarch didn't utter a word, and fell to their knees.

"Chara!" Frisk launched forward to support them, but recoiled slightly when they tried to hug them. They brought one of their wrapped hands back, and found that it was covered in a thin layer of sticky, red liquid. It was blood. Chara's entire back was soaked with blood.

They gazed back up into their pale face, and noticed their shallow breaths, the beads of cold sweat, and the way their eyes seemed to stare straight ahead at nothing.

Frisk lips trembled in fear. "You… you're hurt."

"... I…" Chara tried to speak, but had trouble taking enough air in their lungs to do so.

Frisk brought them back into their embrace with shaking arms, wincing at the warm wetness that seeped into their clothes. _I... I'm so sorry. I'll fix this, just give me a moment, I'll think of something._

Chara scoffed, then winced at the pain shooting through them. _You were so willing to throw your life away for these Monsters, yet now you continue refusing to reset?_

_I can't. Not until you promise not to hurt him. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for you to get hurt like this._

Chara would have growled if they could. _You really don't want me to kill him do you?_

_No, I really don't. I'm sorry I can't explain right now, but it's not just for you or me. It's for the good of all monsterkind. I'm only looking out for-_

Chara coughed, and their spit sprayed out with a mix of blood.

_Oh god,_ Frisk cried, their breath short with panic. _What do I do? How do I help you?_

_You could reset, you silly fool._ Chara sassed. _Food. I need monster food._

_Right. Yeah. I-I have this._ Frisk sunk their shaky hand into their pocket and fished out piece of wrapped candy.

Chara stared down blankly, and it wasn't due to their injuries. _You took more than one from the bowl._

Frisk blinked, then blushed. _Umm, maybe?_

_You were only supposed to take one. Mother even put up a sign telling you that._

The blush deepened. _I-it was supposed to be for you._

_Is that what you tell yourself at night? How can you look at yourself in the mirror, you disgusting brat?_

_C… Can I just give you the candy now?_

Chara snorted quietly, unable to maintain their facade anymore. They opened their mouth in a signal to be fed, and was promptly yanked to the ground, and dragged away by their legs.

"No!" Frisk leapt forward and grabbed Chara's hands, pulling with all their might no matter how futile the effort was. A few feet of getting dragged about, another set of vines erupted from the ground and coiled around them, forcing the two apart.

Flowey's mad cackle filled the room.

"What'd I say about ignoring me? What did I say?!"

The vines dragged both humans up in the air, hanging them upside down right in front of the flower.

Frisk tried to budge, but as always only succeeded in hurting themselves against the thorns. Chara, meanwhile, glared with hooded eyes, their sweat drenched face now almost white. Slowly, their eyes began to glow, and their body slowly lit in white flames, engulfing the plant matter holding them.

Seconds later, the flames dissipated, and to their shock, revealed the still healthy green vines underneath.

"Oops! Sorry, Chara. That's not gonna work on me anymore." Flowey winked. "While you guys were busy chatting, I pumped my stems full of water from a nearby stream. They're like a cactus after a good cold rain. Simple fire magic can't burn them now."

Chara blinked, then smirked. "C...Cle.. ver..."

"Aw shucks, thanks buddy!" The friendly smile grew into a sinister grin. "Let me show you how grateful I am by devouring both of your souls."

"No, stop, don't do this!" Frisk pled as they shook their body side by side.

Flowey smiled contemplatively, tapping their leaf on their chin. "Hmm, let me think… No."

Both human's chest began glowing in deep red, and soon their souls, both in the shape of a small red heart, bubbled forth. Cackling, Flowey summoned another set of vines and slowly reached out, savouring the two humans' helplessness to the fullest.

"No, wait, please!" Frisk yelled again. "Take my soul, leave Chara's alone!"

The vines paused, and Flowey turned to the child with a curious gaze. "Yeah?"

"Yes, just take mine, please." The child begged, much to his amusement.

"And why should I?" He decided to humour the kid.

Frisk spoke quickly, knowing that they only had his attention for a short while. "You only need one more soul right? King Asgore has the other six. You don't need to take another. You can just take mine and still become an all powerful being!"

Flowey bursted out laughing. "Wow, are you seriously sacrificing yourself for this piece of shit? Don't you remember what they did to you?"

Frisk bit their lips, tears welling up in their eyes. "I don't care. Please, just… just take my soul, please. Let Chara go."

Flowey snickered again. "Golly, you really are serious aren't you?" He nodded, impressed. "But, nah. Sorry to be selfish, but that's what I am: Selfish! Now be quiet while I devour your soul, okay?"

"W-wait! No! Have you ever tried a butterscotch pie before?!"

The vines paused again, and this time Flowey turned back to the child in confusion. "Umm… what?"

"Oh yeah, it's great! It's a really nice dessert! Perfect with whipped cream, I think? I haven't actually tried it myself with the cream, but I'm sure it'll be fantastic. Maybe Ms Toriel has some in her fridge and she can let us all try it out. Wouldn't that be great? Mmm, yummy yummy pie!"

Flowey's face was contorted in an odd mix of confused frown, as though he didn't know what sort of face to make. "What the hell are you on about?"

" _When the world is gray and bleak... Baby don't you cry... I will give you every bit of love that's in my heart... I will bake it in a simple little pie…_ "

Flowey stared at the singing child, their brow quirked and mouth slightly agape. "Did you just… completely go insane?"

" _It's gonna be a pie from heaven above… It's gonna be filled with strawberry love… I forgot the rest of this song… Chara are you finished yet…?_ "

"Oh, I was done aeons ago. I just wanted to see how long you can keep the pretense up."

Flowey snapped his head around. "What the he-"

"And pop!"

As though on cue, a pair of small bangs echoed through the air.

Both vines that was crawling forth towards the human souls dropped to the floor in a loud crash, their base shredded in tatters as though they'd been carved a hundred times over by a tiny knife.

Flowey blinked, stunned. "Wha-"

"And pop!"

Another series of bangs and pops rang out, and suddenly the stem holding Chara fell dead to the ground as well.

The monarch flipped in midair, and landed on their feet in a move that would have made any athletes jealous. They sighed, annoyed, and kicked the now loose rope wrapped around their legs away. They patted away the invisible dust from their clothes, turned down towards Flowey, and smiled, making him flinch back.

They tutted condescendingly. "A rule of magical combat, dearie: If you have a captive, always make sure to restrain their method of spell-casting. And do _not_ take your eyes off of them. Ever."

They flicked their arm out to their side in a throwing motion, and a ball of red magic, a size of a baseball, flew at the stem holding Frisk. When the ball came into contact with the plant, it exploded with a small bang, and showered its surrounding with tiny shrapnel that shredded the vines into nothing.

Frisk fell with a small "Eep!", and landed face first to the ground.

Chara winced, then sighed exasperatedly. "I really need to teach you some grace, dear. You're ruining the mood."

"S-sorry." Frisk muttered as they climbed back on their feet.

"Hmph. Now if you could please be quiet while I deal with this pest?" _And before you say my name in a condescending tone, let me tell you that I am not going to kill him. I just need to… talk, shall we say? Maybe threaten him a little. Nothing harmful, alright?_

Frisk, who was in fact going to call Chara out on their killing intent, closed their mouth and backed off. Chara nodded in gratitude, and turned their full focus back to the scowling Flowey.

"How?" He growled. "How are you standing? I saw my pellets pulverise you. You were already half dead!"

"Hmph, yes. I suppose I was." Chara turned around to reveal their blood drenched back. But through the torn clothes, it was easy to see that there wasn't any sort of injuries underneath. "And while I would love to take credit for my rapid recovery, I'm afraid my little assistant here must take responsibility for that."

"You?!" Flowey glowered at Frisk who waved their hand sheepishly. "But how? You don't even know magic!"

"No. But they are certainly quick on their feet." Chara raised their fist and released it.

A scrunched up scrap of blue-silver plastic floated down to the ground.

"Candy wrapping?"

"Correct. My dear child leapt forward the moment you started dragging me away, but they certainly had no mind to play tug of wars with you. No, they were actually handing this over to me. By the time I tried to burn away your vines, I was already fully healed."

Flowey took a moment to absorb the information, then shook his head. "But… But my vines. How did you break them? I never saw you use that spell before."

"No, you didn't." Chara grinned fiendishly. "And you want to know something else? You haven't seen me use this spell either."

Their red eyes burned bright, and suddenly, little red weeds began growing around Flowey. Before he could even question their existence, they jumped out and coiled around his stem in a full body knot.

"What the heck?!" Flowey hissed as he twisted and pulled to rip the weeds away, which quickly proved to be futile. He then tried to burrow, but the weeds held tight, and he was sprung back up the moment he dug into the ground like a trampoline. He growled and scowled at the monarch, furious. "What did you do?! How are you doing this? This is _my_ magic!"

Chara placed their hand over their mouth and giggled. "It certainly is. I must thank you for showing me so much of it. It is quite useful I find."

_How_ are _you doing that?_ Frisk asked as well, just as shocked as Flowey.

_Shut up, child. Don't ruin this._

"If I wish to explain how my magic works I'm afraid I'm going to have to give you a few lessons regarding the rules of magic. Let's start with something simple!"

Flowey tried to burrow again, and was rewarded with the same useless results.

Chara continued, unfazed. "Question one: how does one decide what magic they are going to use in their life?"

"Screw you!" Flowey hissed.

His thorny vines slithered out from the ground to attack, but the moment they did, the red weeds tightened around him, choking him to a point where the layers of his stem was caving in with a small crunch. The green vines quickly lost their momentum and fell to the ground lifelessly.

"Naughty, naughty. Let's not do that again, shall we? No foul languages, please." Chara faux smiled, loosening their weeds a touch. "No. The answer is: They don't. You don't go to Waterfall and teach an Aaron to wield fire magic, or expect a monster from Hotland to learn water magic. It doesn't work like that. Each person has their own aptitude, their own affinity to a certain types of magic, and they can only cast spells based on that. They don't decide. They are born with it."

"I'll kill you, you little brat!"

"Hush. Question two: How does one determine their magical affinity? It's obvious, don't you think?"

"Umm… it's in their nature?" Frisk offered tentatively.

"Very good, darling. It certainly is. Monsters who favour the heat or warmth, tend to offer fire magic. Monsters who likes music is most likely to have sound magic. And plants, like you, my little pest, can wield plant based magic. Simple, no?" Chara bent down and tapped Flowey on his non-existent nose. The plant hissed and tried to bite their finger, an attempt which was repelled by a quick flick of a finger. "So here is my final question then: What type of magic do humans have affinity to?"

Flowey glowered, breathing heavily through their grit teeth. Chara giggled again.

"Oh, my apologies. Perhaps I should rephrase that. What kind of magic do _I_ have affinity to?"

They raised their palm which was glowing in a fog of sparkling red. Hovering over it was a little red friendliness pellet spinning around on its axis.

"No answer?" Chara asked their two audience who was now staring openly at the pellet with obvious shock.

The monarch's grin widened to a manic degree.

"It's adaptation, dear. I'm a copy cat."

Chara blew on their hand gently, catching the pellet in a light breeze. It flew past Flowey's head, only missing it by a hair's breath, and the moment it hit the ground, it was as though a small atomic bomb had gone off.

The entire room shook as though hit by an earthquake, invisible shockwave spreading out, kicking up clouds of brown dirt that engulfed everything in its path. Chara and Frisk both stumbled back, then looked away to prevent the shower of dirt from getting in their eyes.

The low rumbling stopped a moment later, dirt scattering on to the floor like rain. Amongst the sound of the dirt settling back, a small cackle was heard, becoming louder and louder with each passing moment.

Chara threw their head back, spending every part of their lung to laugh their entire being out in sheer joy and untamed excitement.

"This is fantastic!" They guffawed. "Such power! Such destruction! I could not have hoped to learn a spell of this magnitude without your assistance, Flowey dearest. It seems I owe you much!" They grinned down at the small spot where the plant had been restrained. A large mound of dirt had formed there, the flower buried under it. "Why, I am so grateful, that I think I'm going to let you leave with your life in tact. How does that sound to you?"

They waited for the dirt to settle fully, then watched as the mound angrily shook away, revealing a dirtied, and still tied up Flowey. His hagged breaths were filled with rage, spits flying from his teeth and lips as it became more rapid with each short intake of air. Finally, the creature looked up, his eyes completely black and filled with pure, unadulterated hate.

Then, in a blink of an eye, it all melded up in a crude imitation of a smile.

"Yeah? You're gonna thank me? Well, it's no problem. I'm glad you liked _stealing_ my magic. So, you know what?" There was a loud crack of walls from far behind them, and Flowey's smile doubled in size. "I guess I'll just do that in return. Hope you don't mind, friend."

"Chara!" Frisk's distressed voice made the monarch turn, and their blood ran cold at the sight before them, their mind and expression draining into a blank slate.

On the other end of the chamber, where the three Moldsmals had been huddling up before, a web of thorny vines had appeared, rising from the ground and up into the ceiling. The child was running towards the web as fast as their legs could take them, though Chara wasn't sure what they were going to do once they reached it.

The Moldsmals weren't huddling on the ground anymore. They were hung up in the air, their gelatinous body stabbed and pierced with thorns and vines, dangling on them like blobs of lime green fruit. Had the monsters been anything more animal like in appearance, the scene would have been no doubt quite horrific to look at.

To Chara, however, the outward appearance of the monster didn't change anything. It affected them in all the wrong ways, just the same.

"No…" They whispered, their tone so cold, it could freeze fire. "No. NO."

"Yes! Yes!"

Flashing red eyes turned their deadly gaze down at the cackling flower.

" _You… YOU!"_

"Hey, come on buddy. Don't you know?" Flowey said, their entire body trembling as they tried their best to suppress their laughter to speak. "In this world, it's kill or be killed! It's not _my_ fault you were _so stupid_ and let me live!"

Chara's response came in a rage filled roar.

They charged forward, and grasping for the flower's head with both hands, their eyes blind with murder. But before they could even touch him, a circle of friendliness pellets shot out to strike at them.

They wanted to raise their guard, disconnect themselves from their emotions and repel the pellets away, but there were too much anger in them right now, too much sorrow, and hate. They had no choice but to lunge away from the attack.

"What's the matter?" Flowey mocked. "Aren't you gonna knock them away?!"

Vines burst out from the ground, but instead of going for the monarch, it scraped dangerously close to Flowey's body. A large thorn sliced into his face but at the same time, it cut through the little red weeds that was holding him down. The left edge of the flower, along with three golden petals, broke away from the strike, but his crude smile never went away. He was now free.

With another yell, Chara dashed forward, but before they were even within reach, Flowey burrowed into the ground, and reappeared on the ceiling far away.

"Sorry kid! I'd love to stay and watch, but I get the feeling I'm not really welcome here!" He winked, all friendly like he had been before. It was cruel, mocking. "I guess I'll see you around then, eh? Ta-tah, you two, have fun!"

With that he burrowed one last time, and disappeared from sight.

* * *

Chara stared at the spot in shock, not comprehending what had just happened. Could not process the fact that… they let him get away.

_What have you done?_

_You failed._

_You let him go._

_You have accomplished nothing._

Chara stood for a moment longer, then bellowed in pure, unfiltered rage.

They threw out their hand and fired several balls of white flames at the spot where Flowey had disappeared to, but it was a futile attempt in both hurting him as well as being an outlet for their endless anger.

It was only when the child's mental voice reached the point of breaking calling out for them that they snapped back to reality. Without another moment's wait, they turned and ran for Frisk and the injured monsters.

With Flowey's departure, the vines that had speared the monsters had disappeared too, leaving splatters of lime green jellies twitching on the floor. Frisk was kneeling over the mutilated monsters, hand hovering over them, clearly wanting to help, but not knowing how.

Before Chara even made it half way across the room, the jellies shriveled into a pile of white dust.

Chara's breath hitched, and they felt their world shake with an unseen force.

They reached their destination in double time, but there was little they could do.

The monsters were dead.

"No." Chara fell to their knees, their eyes wide and vacant, fixed on the white dust covered floor in sheer disbelief. "No. No, no, no, no no _no!_ NO! NO!"

They cried out loud, tears streaming down their face, as they grasped at the fine powder in their trembling hands. They brought it to their chest, weeping as they rocked back and forth, chanting, "No!" over and over.

_How could you let this happen?_ The voices cried in their head. _You failed them. How could you fail them? You were their saviour. You were their future._

_You are nothing now. You let all of your friends die again._

Frisk was crying as well, but at the same time they were shocked by the monarch's reaction. They had never seen Chara like this. When they had first accidentally killed one of the monsters in fright, Chara was indifferent, if not mocking as they explained what despicable deed that they had done. They had never seen them in so much… sorrow and despair. A knife was twisting in their heart, and it felt much worse than the times when Chara did it to them in real life.

They sniffled, but swallowed their sobs enough to approach their partner, ready to comfort them the only way they knew how. "Chara. Chara, I'm so sorry." They whispered, but then kicked at the ground to jump backwards.

They stopped a few steps away, eyeing Chara's blue magic blade warily.

A thin line of red appeared across their cheek.

"Reset!" Chara snapped at the shocked Frisk.

"Wh-What?"

"Reset!" They repeated, their tearful eyes wide and frantic. "Undo this! Undo this right now!"

Frisk wanted to. They didn't want these poor monsters to die just because they'd been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

But...

"No."

Chara's eyes flashed dangerously. "I beg your pardon?"

"What are you planning on doing to Flowey if I do?" Frisk asked quickly.

"Do you think I give a single FUCK about that piece of shit flower?! He's gone! Undo this right now, or I will make you suffer, do you understand me?!"

Frisk flinched back, their face paling as the horrid memories flushed back. But in the end they still shook their head. "No. Not yet. Not when you're like this."

"Like what?! Wronged? Shamed? Insulted?!"

"Angry and rash." Frisk provided calmly. "If I do reload, he'll remember everything that'd happened here. He'll know how mad you are and he'll use it to his advantage."

Chara could not believe what they were hearing. "So what? I'm far stronger than he could ever hope to be! I'll crush his puny face before he can utter a single word!"

"Maybe you will, but he's dubious, you know that. He'll have some trick up his sleeves. And even if he didn't, I'm still not going to let you go kill him. I told you before, and I will tell you again: We need him alive."

Chara was standing in a flash, their magic blade crackling with untamed power as they held its tip against Frisk's neck. "I will hurt you. I will hurt you so bad you will be begging for mercy if you don't reset, _right now_."

Frisk stared back, their shaking arms the only indication of their fear. "No."

Chara lunged forward, swiping their blade across the air.

"I'll SAVE!"

The blade stopped, inches away from slicing Frisk's throat open.

"You'll _what?"_ The monarch's voice rumbled, like an earthquake in a distance.

"I… I'll SAVE." Frisk stuttered. "If you try to kill me, I'll SAVE. I'll change my point of return. I can only have one at a time. These monsters will be dead, and they'll stay dead. It'll be permanent in this timeline. Not even I can change it after that."

Chara felt their heart stop, then pump so hard they could feel their shirt quivering with each beat. "You dare threaten _me_?"

Frisk swallowed hard. "I-I'm doing what I can to ensure our future."

Chara rushed forward, standing so close to the child that they almost touched noses. Frisk's breath hitched in fear, but the blade held to their jugular had not moved just yet.

Chara leaned in, slowly, their eyes menacing, teeth bared, and breath uneven. Frisk felt their knees weaken, their lips tremble in sheer terror, but they held on. They couldn't afford to do anything else.

"You." Chara's voice rumbled again, so low and guttural that it seemed to shake the very air around them. "You who claimed to be a friends of the monsterkind, would do this? You will let these innocent creatures die?"

"I-I will. I don't want these Moldsmals to die, but if that's what it takes to stop you from killing Flowey, I'll do it. We need him, Chara."

"For what?! What do we need him alive for?! TELL ME!"

Frisk nearly ran from the outburst, and was impressed by the fact that they hadn't wet their pants just yet. They slowly opened their eyes which they had winced shut, and when they looked back up, their heart broke at the sight of fresh tears streaming down Chara's angry face.

"Oh Chara..." They tried to console, but Chara wouldn't have any of it.

"Stop, I do not need you pity." They turned away.

"It's not pity. I just... hate seeing you sad."

"Then why won't you reset?" Chara growled, pushing their blade at Frisk's throat again. "Why would you do this to them?"

"We need Flowey alive to free the monsterkind. He's the key to breaking the barrier."

Chara stared incredulously, then hissed, "I already know how to break the barrier, you _fool_. Father already has six souls with him. All he needs now is-"

"Mine?" Frisk provided, smiling sadly at Chara's menacing glare. "I thought you'd say that, and before you go on I'll tell you: I've tried it before."

Chara blinked. "You've what?"

"I tried giving my soul to dad," Frisk reiterated. "And all it ended up doing was return me back to my last SAVE point. I was happy to die for the monsters, but I didn't want to die. It's a... basic instinct, I think you told me. I'm not suicidal, and that's all it takes for me to come back, no matter how much I try otherwise."

Chara stood in silence, absorbing the information which sunk in slowly like a slab of mud on a carpet. Once it did, however, they immediately returned to glaring at the child. "So what, then? I'm supposed to trust your words and let that… that _fiend_ go free?"

"If you want to break the barrier to free the monsters? Yes. You have to let your rage go."

"You do not tell me what to do, child. I will hold on to my anger as long as I see fit."

"Then I won't reload. It's simple as that."

"You will. I will force you to."

"If you try and kill me, I'll SAVE, and you won't be able to go back no matter how much you torture me."

The child's response held such confidence, it grated on Chara's nerves. They pressed their blade with renewed vigour, until they drew blood in the child's throat.

"Reset."

"No."

"Re. Set."

" _No."_

"I order you to reset! I ORDER YOU TO RESET!"

The command echoed about the Ruins like a haunting wail, but the child didn't even falter, and gazed back into their eyes with unshaking determination. "You can't tell me what to do. Not this time around."

Chara snapped. With a roar, they grabbed Frisk by the shoulder and pushed them down on to the ground. They leapt on top of them in the instant that followed, and began pummeling the child across the face with both of their fist, all the while yelling, screaming at the top of their lungs.

One punch. Two punches. Ten punches. Twenty punches. Chara kept their attack up until their fists became so raw they couldn't even feel it anymore, kept screaming until their throat was so soar they could only let out a soundless wheezes, kept crying until their eyes could only see the world in a fractured swirls of colour.

A pair of feeble hands reached up and grabbed their wrist, and despite not having any strength behind them, Chara couldn't tear themselves free from the child's grasp.

They collapsed, falling down on top of the child and slamming their enraged fists down on the ground with a gut wrenching roar. A cloud of dust stormed up from the impact and slowly rained down on their huddled form.

Slowly, Frisk's arms rose, and wrapped around the weeping monarch, and for once, Chara didn't brush them off or yell at them.

The two remained there for a long time, Chara's body racked with uncontrollable sobs, and Frisk cooing words of soft reassurance, holding them and allowing them to release it all out of their system.

For full three minutes neither of them said anything, and when they finally did, the first one to break the silence was Chara.

"P...please…" The monarch begged, their broken voice mixed with sobs. "Please, reset, _please_. I will… I will stop hurting you. I will do whatever you want. Please, just _please_ … Just bring them back. They don't deserve this… None of them do..."

Frisk wanted to grasp at their chest, Chara's overwhelming sorrow bringing them to tears. But they couldn't give in, not until they were sure.

"Promise me." They said as best as they could through their busted and swollen lips. "You can't kill Flowey. It's for the good of all monsterkind. We have to save them."

Chara blinked their tears away, and frowned at the demand. "I cannot just leave him. He needs to be punished. He needs to be imprisoned in a pot where he will be starved until we need to utilise him in whatever plan you have!"

" _No_." Frisk shook their head and gripped Chara's shoulders firm. "You have to leave him alone. _Promise me."_

The monarch stared at the child's disfigured face, and saw their unwavering eyes even through all the blood and bruises. It was the same eyes that they had back in their room when they were going through their endless torture. They weren't going to give up. They never did. "I… I promise... I promise."

Frisk smiled as best as they could, and pulled Chara into one last hug.

Slowly, they motioned to stand up. Chara received the queue and got off the child. They didn't offer any helping hand but Frisk was okay with that.

It was difficult, but they somehow managed to stand without falling over. Their head was still spinning from the repeated blows, and they quickly found that they couldn't see very well. They reached for their eyes, then immediately recoiled with a hiss when they felt the large bruised lump that was their eyelids.

"Ow." They mumbled to themselves.

"Come, look at me." Chara asked quietly, and Frisk turned towards the sound.

A bright light came over them and forced their eyes closed, but at the same time, a breeze of warm air soothed over them like a balm. It took a few seconds, but the glow soon faded away, and at the prompting from Chara, Frisk opened their eyes.

"There." Chara's solemn face greeted them. "You will still feel sore, but you look much better than before."

It was true. Frisk raised their hands and pressed on the various parts of their face and found that, while indeed sore, the shape was all as it should be, no odd lumps of hard flesh anywhere. They looked up with a smile.

"Thank you." They said, then added sheepishly. "You didn't need to though. Once I reload, it would have all been gone."

Chara hummed, but didn't say much else.

It made Frisk smile a bit brighter, and with a small sigh they focused back on the issue at hand.

"Okay, I don't know exactly what you were doing when I last SAVED, so be prepared for anything okay? You could have been running or going down the steps or something. You could get hurt."

Chara nodded, just watching, listening, their face drained and exhausted.

Frisk breathed deep. "Are you ready?"

Chara seemed about to nod, but then frowned. "Is… is that it?" They asked, confused.

"Is what it?"

"You're just going to reset like this? Aren't you going to demand more from me? Don't you want some proof that I will keep my word?"

Frisk stared at Chara for the longest moment, so long that Chara almost began feeling uncomfortable. But then they smiled, their expression as bright as the sun. "Silly. Once I reload, there will be nothing I can do to stop you from doing what you want."

It made sense, but Chara didn't let up. "But… you won't even try? Don't you want to keep a leverage on me? Don't you want something to ensure that I listen to you when we go back? To make me stop hurting you?"

Frisk smile loosened somewhat, but it was no less brighter than before. They raised their soft baby hands up, and gently caressed Chara's cheeks. A blossom of warmth spread through both of their heart. "I don't care if I get hurt. The only thing I care about is you. If you're happy, I'll be happy too. I trust you, Chara. You promised you won't hurt him, and I believe in you that you won't. Your words are all I need."

Chara didn't know what to say, and so they just stared back, mouth hung open to reply, but unable to speak.

Frisk giggled, and at that moment, Chara felt that their eyes were more old and more wise than any human they've ever met in their entire life.

"Are you ready?" The child asked once more, their voice kind and strong.

Chara gulped, their cheek hot as though aflame. They half thought to reach up and touch the spot with their own hand, but thought better of it.

"I am." They replied simply.

"Okay." Frisk nodded. "I'll reload now. Be careful, okay? I'll see you soon."

With that, they closed their eyes and fell silent.

Few seconds later, the world faded to black.

* * *

"And then I said to him-"

Flowey's words stopped midsentence, and Chara halted their march towards the passage ahead as well.

Without another word, the monarch's entire body caught fire and began burning with enough heat to vanish the pile of red leaves nearby to black dust in an instant.

Flowey burrowed into the ground and reappeared at the other end of the room. His face contorted into ridiculously wide grin despite the beads of sweat running down it.

"Ha… haha! HAHAHAHAHA! You did it! You reloaded for those stupid jellies! How stupid can you get, you IDIOT?!"

Chara glowered at the creature, but didn't approach him.

"What? Don't have anything to say? Don't you want to kill me? Don't you want revenge?"

Chara's fingers tensed into a menacing claw, but soon relaxed into a firm fist instead.

"Leave." They boomed, their tone so regal and powerful, it would have brought any Monster to their knees. "You have no business here, foul creature. Begone from this place, and never come back, or I _will_ be forced to end you in the worst possible way."

Flowey cackled again. "Yeah, yeah, sure, whatever. I'll leave, but don't think I'm gone. I've been here far longer than you can possibly imagine. I'll be around, watching you and that little brat of yours. I mean, this is the best fun I've had in years. I so wish I could have seen your face when those stupid jellies died."

Chara slammed their eyes shut as rage boiled inside them once more. They had such great desires to rip the flower apart right then.

_Don't let him get to you._ The child's voice filled them, ripping them away from their murderous thoughts. _Let him go. He's not worth the trouble._

They opened their eyes again, their resolve renewed.

"Do what you will. Entertain yourself being a voyeur. I do not care. Just stay out of sight and keep to yourself."

"Oh, of course, Your Highness. I look forward to your little adventure. As I've said, this whole place is so boring, but with you here, I'm sure things will start getting _real_ interesting. I can't wait. I'll see you around."

With a final cackle the flower burrowed back into the ground, and out of sight.

The chamber fell quiet once more, and after a good ten seconds of tension, Chara sighed out loud.

_He's gone._ They announced.

_Okay. I'm on my way right now. Do you know where you are exactly?_

_Not really. I believe I'm a few rooms away from where we were before._

_Oh, I know that place. Just stay there for a while, I'll be there in a few minutes._

_Very well._ Chara sighed and trudged over to the wall where they fell flat on their bottom. It was crude and unseemly for a monarch, but they really didn't care right then.

_Are you alright?_ Frisk's voice came again, and they sighed.

_I am._

There was a pause.

_You don't feel alright._

Chara contemplated on being silent, but ultimately said, _Just hurry up. I wish to return home for supper._

Another pause.

_Thank you for not killing him._

Chara scoffed out loud, but didn't reply. They didn't need to.

The little warmth in their heart, they assumed, was probably a response enough.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Yay! No more fighting between the two! (I think?)**
> 
> **This chapter I wanted to write for a while and it feels good to get it out there! (even though I wish I could have done some things differently, but when the hell do I don't?)**
> 
> **Hope you all enjoyed it! Leave a comment if you can, because as I've said, it totally makes my day.**
> 
> **Ideas that were abandoned for this chapter: Chara flashback, Charisk Knife vs Stick duel, Charisk Kamehameha**
> 
> **Up next: Prelude to leaving the Ruins**


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Holy crap, I am a week late. Sorry everyone, I shall be quite honest with you: I was quite busy with work... and I got stuck playing Fire Emblem Fates. Very fun game, but quite time consuming when you try to play on Lunatic with perma-death on.**
> 
> **Well, I put that on hold, and so here is the new chapter. I did my best to edit things, but as I do work on this alone, I apologise for any mistakes and part that feels a bit rushed.**
> 
> **Also, the reaction to previous chapter has been mixed and I want to thank you for everyone who pointed out what was wrong with it, and everyone who pointed out what they've liked about it. I am a writer in training and every bit of criticism and praise helps me going. I learned a lot from it, and I do wish I can keep this story entertaining as possible for you all.**
> 
> **Anyways, on with the chapter. I hope you all enjoy~**

* * *

"-ANS?! SANS!"

"blergh! wazzat?!" Sans blurted out in panic the moment he was awoken from his pre-breakfast-nap. He slid down from his odd position in the couch, lying upside down with his legs lifted in the air while his head hung down from the main seat. With a loud yawn, he stood up in a long languid motion, putting his hands in his pocket in the process to protect himself from the bristle cold of Snowdin.

It never got any warmer, this place. He'd been asking his brother if they could move to Waterfall or maybe even the Hotlands, but Papyrus was adamant about staying where they were, stating that, " _IT'S CHRISTMAS HERE EVERYDAY, SANS. EVERYDAY! THAT'S 364 MORE PRESENTS!"_

Not that having 365 days worth of presents isn't awesome, but it would be more awesome if he received a lot more heat packets rather than cold spaghetti on the verge of freezing for presents.

Pressing his shoulders inward, he stiffly creaked his head about, and found his brother by the phone, frowning at him.

_aw crap,_ He thought. _he's mad, gotta think up a pun..._

"'sup bro." Sans blanked. _huh, that was not a pun. guess i'm still half asleep._

"SANS! I'VE BEEN CALLING YOU OUT FOR THE PAST MINUTE! HOW DO YOU MANAGE SLEEP SO OBLIVIOUSLY? AND YOU'RE STILL WEARING YESTERDAY'S CLOTHES! DID YOU EVEN WASH YOUR FACE?"

"eh, got no skin anyhow. Why bother?"

"WE LACK SKIN, NOT IMAGES OR STANDARDS!" Papyrus sighed. "WELL, NOW THAT YOU'RE FINALLY UP, COME HERE AND TAKE THE PHONE. DR. ALPHYS WANTS TO TALK TO YOU REAL BAD."

Sans would have raised a brow if he had one. For now, he made do with just staring at his brother blankly. "huh, okay. don't know what she needs _me_ for. she can usually take care of everything on her own."

"WELL, SHE NEEDS HELP _NOW_. SO GET YOUR LAZY BONES OVER HERE AND TAKE THE CALL! IT'S VERY RUDE TO MAKE PEOPLE WAIT, ESPECIALLY YOUR FRIENDS."

Sans narrowed his eyes to the side, his mind racing in thought. _hmm, is there a pun that i can make up here?_

"SANS!"

"alright, i'm moving, i'm moving."

Sans took the phone from Papyrus who huffed and marched into the kitchen grumbling about his brother's laziness. Sans merely shrugged at his retreating form and held the receiver up.

"yellow." He greeted casually.

" _Sans! Oh my god, you're finally here."_ Alphys' panicked voice came through the speaker.

"uhh, i'm not technically 'there', i'm still at my home."

" _So not the time. Listen, you have to come to the lab. I need to talk to you,_ right now _!"_

Sans wasn't convinced, and he shifted uncomfortably. "aw man. if this is about mew-mew kissy 3 announcement being a hoax again…"

" _This is not about anime! And that source was SO legit! It's been five years since the last season ended in a cliffhanger -part of why MMK 2 was total trash, but that's neither here or there- I don't get why they don't just go make the third season already. Everybody wants it. It'll earn them so much money!"_

"then what's this about?" Sans asked, his brain automatically filtering out the doctor's fangirling monologue.

Alphys stopped dead and her hesitation over the receiver was almost tangible. _"...I really don't think we should talk about this over the phone."_

"hey, come on, it's not like the royal guards are listening in." _and i really don't wanna go all the way to hotland. i could be napping the entire time._ "i mean it's not like you and undyne got together and now you're pregnant or whatever, right?"

There was a long silence from the receiver, one that lasted so long that it was starting to make him uncomfortable.

"uuhhh… you… _didn't_. right?"

" _N-no…? I mean, NO! Oh my god, what are you even talking about?! Me and Undyne?! Pfft! PFFT! No way. That'd be impossible! … I mean, it's not_ technically _impossible. She's a fish and I'm a lizard, so if we do want to, we could use a bit of magic, and a bit of science, and we_ could _definitely get a perfectly fertilised egg, and have children of our own, and we can get a house somewhere with meadows and flowers and have a dog, and maybe a cat named Mew-Tan and… you were joking…"_

Sans didn't really know what to say. "you… gave this a lot of thought, haven't you?"

" _So what if I have?!"_ There was a frustrated sigh from the other end. _"Okay. Alright. Look, I've been skimming through some of our latest reports and I found a strange spike in one of them."_

"and that report would be on…?"

" _It was on… the knoppers…"_

Sans lifted the receiver off his ear and examined the speaker for any oddities, going as far as to shake it violently before speaking into it again. "sorry. i think there was some bad reception there. can you repeat that?"

" _The knoppers! We had a spike in the knoppers report!"_

"that's… great?" Sans asked more than say. "sorry, i'm not sure what you're talking about. what's the knoppers?"

" _What's the knopp..?! Sans, you're the one who gave it that code name!"_

San chuckled. "heh, alphys, buddy, i give everything a code name just to hear important people say the stupidest thing. last time, i got asgore to say 'i walked down the street naked' three times in a meeting. you should have seen the look on everyone's face. it was _hilarious._ "

" _Sans!"_

"right, right. the knoppers. so... what are they exactly?"

" _Time manipulations! 'Knoppers' are time manipulations! It happened nearly thirty times yesterday, all within the span of few hours. I don't know who's causing it, but our timeline is a giant mess right now. I don't have enough knowledge on these to decipher what the reports are really saying. I need you to come in and examine them ASAP."_

A long bout of silence ensued.

Sans was still holding the phone by his head, but his permanent grin seemed frozen in the moment along with his entire body, making him look like one of the fake skeleton body Alphys had fished out from the garbage dump (according to her, they were used by humans to learn the skeletal body structure for… some reason). His eyes were sunken back, leaving both of his socket hollow as bullet sweats dripped down his scalp.

" _Sans? Sans, are you there?"_

"what? oh, yeah, right. knoppers. timeline. i'll uhh… right."

" _A-are you okay, Sans? You're worrying me here."_

"oh, yeah, totally. umm... look, i'll be right there, okay? give me two seconds."

Alphys sighed in relief. _"Thank you. It'll be good to have you here. I was about to rip my scales off, trying to figure this out. I've never seen anything like this before."_

Sans wasn't surprised. _i know you haven't. everyone who's seen it before are now..._ "yeah, no problem, alphs. don't worry about it. i'm sure it's nothing big. i'll see you in a bit."

" _See you."_

The phone clicked dead, and Sans placed it back down to it's slot with little hesitation. With a long intake of shuddering breath, he reached out and quickly grabbed his joke book placed underneath the phonebook, and surged his magic forth.

His left eye began twinkling in blue and yellow, and just for that moment, the world turned black.

* * *

#  **Chapter 6**

Frisk was the first to wake of the two children. They rose to the sound of small breathing next to them and they smiled, knowing that Chara hadn't abandoned them in the middle of the night.

They had worried a touch (a lot, really) when Toriel asked them to sleep in the same bed last night. They knew that Chara didn't protest much to them staying in their home anymore but there was a large gap between 'being okay with your presence' and 'sleeping in the same bed.'

Surprisingly, however, Chara didn't object to the idea at all. Sure, they didn't agree with the idea either, and they hadn't speak to them at all since their return from the Ruins, only answering their questions with a glare or a cold shoulder, but hey, it was a huge step up from 'talk to me and I stab you in the neck.'

Everyone had to start somewhere.

Besides, it wasn't all glares and 'don't touch me' vibe from the monarch. Throughout supper and the events afterwards, Frisk, more often than not, found Chara staring at them when they thought they weren't being watched. And it wasn't the 'I so wish you were dead right now' sort of look either. There wasn't anything malicious about it and if anything, the gaze the monarch sent them felt… Ma… Melancholic? Was that the word? Whenever Chara looked at them like that, Frisk was washed with the feeling of dull sadness, sometimes amusement, and sometimes even joy. But most of the time, they felt helpless confusion, then hopelessness. They wanted to ask them, _"What's going on?",_ but knew that they wouldn't get an answer.

_They'll talk to me when they're ready._ They reassured themselves. Chara must have had a lot on their mind right now after everything that had happened between them. Frisk was willing to wait, and hopefully, by the end of it all, the two of them could start something between them once more.

Frisk snuggled into the bed, enjoying the presence of their partner so close to them. The two of them have slept together in the same bed before, but for once, Chara was actually underneath the blanket with them instead of simply hovering over it pretending to lie down, and they did actually sleep instead of waiting for their partner to wake up for hours on end. Even now Frisk had no idea how Chara had had the patience to do that. Perks of being a ghost, they supposed.

Another thing that Frisk delightfully noticed was how warm the bed was now that there was another body in there with them, and how pleasant it was to feel the physical presence next to them. It was reassuring, like having a paper award given to them for all the hardships that they've been through to get to this stage. They knew that there was more work to be done in the coming future, more arduous tasks that needs to be faced, but for now, this moment was all that they've needed. They knew whatever monumental trials they'll be through in the future, it'll all be worth it in the end.

_Before that though,_ They thought. _I'll have to get up and get some breakfast. Empty stomach equals empty mind._

They slid out of the bed with utmost care, keeping their eyes on Chara's sleeping face to make sure that they weren't doing anything to disturb them in any way. With one last smile at the sleeping monarch, they scurried out of room.

And the moment they took a step outside, they bumped straight into Toriel's legs and fell flat on their arse.

"Oh dear, are you alright?" Toriel reached down for the surprised child, helping them up and examining them for any injuries. "I was coming to wake you two up, but it appears you have beaten me to it. You are quite the diligent child."

_Thanks, mum._ Frisk wanted to say as they made sure the door was closed behind them, but they refrained from speaking the words out loud, knowing Chara didn't like it when they called their parents that.

" _You may call them Your Majesties, or Mr and Mrs Dreemurr."_ They had sneered at them. _"I'd rather jump off the palace balcony than be associated as your sibling."_

_Ah Chara, always with the dramatics._ Frisk sighed, though they knew just them being honest with their feelings. So instead of speaking to their mother, Frisk looked up with a reassuring smile, and rubbed their belly in a circular motion.

"Ah, ready for some breakfast, I see?"

Frisk nodded, happy about Toriel's ability to decipher their body message so quickly.

"Is Chara up? Shall we wake them as well?" She asked, moving for the door.

_No, let them sleep._ Frisk stepped back and stood between the door and Toriel, guarding the room with their tiny body.

Toriel stopped, then giggled at the sight. "My, what's this? Are you guarding our little monarch from their evil mother disrupting their sleep? Aren't you a brave one?"

Frisk blushed at the comment, but stood their ground, puffing one of their cheek out stubbornly. Unable to help herself, Toriel reached out and patted the their head, making them blush deeper.

"Well, I do not usually allow my children to sleep in as it tends to develop a bad habit, but I suppose I could make an exception this time around." She stood up, offering the child her hand. "Come. I shall guide you to my bookshelf where I have prepared a variety of exciting books for your entertainment as well as your education. You can occupy yourself while I prepare us our meal."

Frisk took her hand without hesitation, and followed her to the living room. But when Toriel tried to release them by the fireplace and leave to kitchen, they clung to her legs.

"Oh, what are you-?"

Frisk didn't let her finish and quickly ran ahead to the kitchen doorway. They pointed at themselves with one hand while the other pointed inside.

Toriel tilted her head in confusion before the puzzles clicked together. "You wish to help me with the preparation?" She guessed, and was rewarded with Frisk's vigorous nod. She giggled again. "I see. I understand, and I would be happy to have a little assistant giving me a hand. Perhaps you can prepare the eggs?"

Frisk beamed, and ran into the kitchen first, opening the fridge to pull out a carton of eggs. The two quickly got to work, with Frisk whisking eggs and milk for an omelette while Toriel got to frying the lean bacon on the stove. Unfortunately, the counter top proved to be too tall for Frisk to efficiently break eggs in the large bowl, so they opted to sit on the floor with the ingredients and got working there. Toriel didn't mind, though she did warn them to wash their hands right after.

She slapped rows of the cured meat into the heated pan and the air was immediately filled with a series of loud sizzle. "These are for special occasions, you know? Meat products are so very difficult to come by in this land. I heard that the Royal Scientist had been working to create these… lab-grown meat? But she had been unsuccessful so far. Can you imagine? Meat that grows on trees. My, how the world has changed."

Frisk scrunched their face at the idea. _That sounds… weird._

"Oh, I agree." Toriel giggled after a glance at their expression. "But it might give us monsters an opportunity to expand on our food variety. It would be good to try making beef lasagna every now and then. I know Chara would appreciate that very much."

She flipped the bacons over, pressing the raw side down and revealing their slowly browning side up. The air was beginning to fill up with its thick, greasy aroma that made Frisk's mouth water.

"I would normally object to eating such fattening product," She frowned at the liquid fat starting to pool around the pan. "But I admit that children need variety of food to grow up healthy and strong. Not only that, today _is_ a special occasion, is it not? Chara's first breakfast since their return. If that is not a cause for celebration, I do not know what is."

Frisk paused their whisking briefly to smile up at her, nodding in agreement. She smiled back, and continued cooking in silence, letting the sizzling of the frying meat fill up the gap.

After the content of the bowl had mixed into an even yellow, Frisk grabbed the cup of grated cheese beside them and sprinkled it over the bowl's content. With one final whisk, the omelette was ready to be made.

They quickly pulled themselves up on both feet, scurried over to their mother and pushed the bowl up as high as they could without spilling it, striking a pose that screamed, _I did it! Totally on my own, too! Can I get a praise?_

Then, their beaming smile slowly fell as they noticed the beads of tears pooling in Toriel's eyes, and the way her lips trembling as though she was about to burst out crying at any given moment.

Frisk staggered back, confused. They quickly sat the bowl down a few steps away where they wouldn't be disturbed, and ran back to Toriel to give her an all encompassing hug.

Toriel blinked at the sudden contact, and looked down to find the child squeezing her leg with all their might. She smiled and placed a gentle hand over their head. "Ah, I apologise, my child. I just…" Her words choked in her throat. She tried to speak again, but tears replaced the words and began flowing out instead. Closing her eyes, she took a moment before trying again. "I just cannot believe…" She swallowed, her voice hoarse. "They are here, are they not? They are here, in their room, sleeping? Sleeping a sleep where they _will_ eventually wake up?"

Frisk's heart ached at her broken tone and they hugged her tighter, nodding into her robe.

She sniffled, and pulled a sheet of kitchen towel to wipe at her eyes and nose. She knew she shouldn't. She knew that, as an adult, she mustn't break down like this to a child, much less to one whom she barely knew. But once the words started, it was like a floodgate being opened. Try as she might she couldn't close it back up, and she began spilling everything that was on her mind.

"This morning when I woke up, I have had the most horrible thought: What if I had dreamed everything? What if I had been fooled by my own hopeful imagination once again, and when I walk down the hallway to peek into their room, no one will be there? I lied, child. I was not coming to wake you up, but to prove my fears wrong. I had been standing in front of that door for minutes on end. I wanted to, but could not bring myself to open it. What if my fears were right? What if they were wrong? You cannot understand how relieved I was when that door opened by itself you came running out."

The tears kept coming, and she deemed it was enough. She turned off the stove and leaned into the counter top, placing a hand over her mouth to stifle a sob. "I kept looking at them yesterday. I could not stop. I wanted there to be no doubt. I wanted to remember every details about them, to make sure that the next time I lose them, I will have a flawless image ingrained in my mind. And do you know what was most surprising?" Frisk shook their head, but Toriel didn't seem to realise that they were even there anymore. "To my joy and shock, they were exactly as I remembered them. Six decades and there was not a single detail about them that I found that was new or had caught me off guard. My memories was flawless. At first I thought, 'This is good. They really are back, and they are here to stay.' but then I realised, 'How could that be? I am not infallible. Should there not be something, _anything,_ that I did not remember about them properly? Should there not be a detail, even a smallest one, that I have forgotten?'" Sobs choked her words, and she took a moment to cry into her hand. "I am… _so_ scared… I fear that I have lost my mind. I cannot help but think that I have gone completely insane from my isolation, from my loneliness, my grief. But... if I have gone mad, then I do not wish to be cured. I will stay mad forever, for I cannot ask for a better way to spend the rest of my life than this. To be with my child. To be with you. I am a mother once more. Is this not what I have been hoping for all these years?"

"You're not mad…"

Toriel's eyes widened in shock. She looked down at Frisk who looked up at her with teary eyes.

"You're not mad." The child repeated, their voice quiet. "Chara's here, and I'm here too. You'll never lose your child again. Not this time around. I'll make sure. I promise."

Toriel laughed, amused by the comforting words. She was being consoled by a wee little child whose head barely came up to her hip. Shouldn't it be the other way around? "Will you?" She cooed, playing along, "Will you be guarding them like a good little knight, just as you did this morning guarding their door?"

It was meant to be a joke, a jest to make light of the situation and hide her embarrassment at pouring out her fears at an innocent little child. But the way Frisk looked up at them then, the way their eyes held gaze with hers, it compelled her to listen, not just with her ears, but with her heart.

"Yes." They said, voice loud and firm. "I will protect them. I will protect them with my life. You will never be childless again."

_Ha. Words spoken by a clueless child, and nothing more._ Toriel told herself, tried to convince herself, but there was something about this child, some sort of heavy presence that was oddly reassuring. It made her want to listen to them, and trust them. _How strange. Asgore used to speak like that, didn't he?_

She chuckled, soft. Was she starting to think of her ex now? As if getting comforted by a little child wasn't enough. But she couldn't deny that she was now feeling a lot better, her fears receding back to the darkest part of her mind where she can lock them up once more.

"Thank you, my child." She smiled as she crouched down and pulled Frisk into a hug. The pair remained there for several seconds. With one last squeeze, she pulled away and stood back up. "Well, I think that's enough waterworks for today." She announced, wiping her eyes of any tears. "We should get back to work. After all, these breakfast can't cook themselves, yes?"

Frisk agreed happily, and continued their help by setting up the table with plates and utensils while Toriel continued on, her heart a multitude lighter than before.

Neither the mother or the child noticed the monarch quietly walking back into their room, and softly closing the door behind them.

* * *

Frisk perked up the moment they saw Chara approach the table just as they were about to finish setting everything up.

_Good morning!_ They greeted, chipper, hoping that they would receive some sort of response this time, but alas, the bout of cold shoulder continued and Chara merely walked past them to take a seat, not even throwing a single glance their way. Frisk sighed, but didn't let it get them down.

General silence reigned over the breakfast table, even with Toriel dining with them. She actively tried to start a conversation with Chara multiple times, but the monarch answered her in short, mostly one word sentences. Frisk tried to communicate through their mind as well but didn't fare any better than before.

The child and Toriel shared a look, and continued to watch the monarch chip away at their food. Toriel was understandably worried about her child, but even Frisk was beginning to worry now. They were okay when it was just them that Chara was ignoring, but now they were acting distant with their own mother whom they've always shown great affinity to. _Are they sick?_ Frisk started to wonder. _Chara, are you sick?_

Suddenly, Chara's fork and knife clacked on the table top. "That was an excellent meal. Thank you, mother."

Both Frisk and Toriel blinked and looked down at Chara's empty plate.

"Oh, you are very welcome." Toriel nodded then grabbed the plate full of eggs and bacon in the middle. "But you've eaten so little. Would you like seconds? Growing children need their nutrients, after all."

"Growing children also need to have their limits." They argued lightly. "But maybe we could make something with the leftovers later. Carbonara perhaps."

Faced with the finality of their tone, all Toriel could do was smile, uneasy as it may have been. "Perhaps." She agreed.

Chara nodded, appearing grateful. "Now, if I may be excused?"

"So soon?" Toriel voiced, her worry doubling.

"I apologise. I feel…" Chara shifted their gaze to the child, the first time that day. Frisk jumped slightly, but held the oddly non-hostile look the monarch was giving them curiously. "I am a little under the weather. I think a little rest would do me well."

Chara didn't wait for an answer and got out of their seat, their red eyes lingering on Frisk who continued to stare back. They then blinked when the monarch finally turned around and made their way down the hall and disappeared into their room, the door closing shut behind them with a small thud.

The child frowned in thought, wondering what that was about. They had an odd feeling that Chara was telling them something, asking them to do something without saying it physically or mentally.

Then it hit them.

_Wait, did they want me to follow them?_

Frisk didn't think about it twice, and immediately hopped off the chair.

"Frisk?" Toriel called out, obviously puzzled by both children's behaviour.

Frisk ran over to her, grasped her large hand with their own, and gave her a reassuring smile. They pointed at themselves then over down the hallway where Chara had disappeared to. Then with one last squeeze of her hand, they left to follow the monarch into the room, leaving Toriel staring after them in puzzlement.

* * *

Chara was looking intently at the Dreemurr's family photograph perched next to the lamp when the door to the room creaked open. They ripped their gaze from the smiling faces of the royal family and turned to the child closing the door behind them. They hummed. The child was sharper than they gave credit for.

They walked over to the bed and sat down, all the while eyeing Frisk whose awkward stance in the middle of the room reminded them of a soldier caught in a field full of landmines. They were being cautious, not willing to act without knowing exactly what they were facing against. Chara couldn't blame them for their fear, of course. After all, _they_ weren't the ones who tended to blow off into a murderous rage at a drop of a hat, were they? But that was neither here or there. They wanted the child here for a reason and they neither had the will or the patience to cater for their cautiousness.

"Sit." Chara ordered, then snorted at the way the child jumped like a frightened cat at the sudden command.

"O-okay?" Frisk stuttered, uncertainty marring their every action as they hopped onto the bed with a little hesitation.

At the same time, Chara notice the way the child kept a good arm's length away from them as they sat. Chara squinted. _Are they afraid of being struck? Or are they being considerate?_ All of their past experience with human beings dictated with quite the certainty that it was the former, but for some reason, their heart was telling them otherwise. _For who else would be stupid enough to be concerned for their psychopathic murderer, no?_

_Such a foolish, naive child..._

"... How did you find breakfast, dear?" They began without turning, starting the conversation light.

"Uhh… good?" Clearly the mundane question threw Frisk off. "Ms Toriel's cooking is always good."

"A very true statement." Chara smiled a touch. "And did you have a good night's sleep?"

"Yeah?"

"Even though you were sleeping next to me?"

The bed shifted as the child turned their whole body towards them. "It's because you were sleeping next to me that I slept so well." They claimed, and Chara rolled their eyes.

_There they go again with their screw-headed logic._ They thought. But at that moment something shot through their heart, making it skip a beat. They chose not to think about it too much.

"I have been wondering. You said that you knew how to break the barrier, yes?" They continued.

Frisk nodded, though they were thrown off once again by the sudden change in topic. "Uhh, yeah. Without using seven human souls."

Chara pondered on the answer. "And How did you come by this... method, if I may ask?"

"I…" The child trailed off, a peculiar look crossing their face. "... I've done it before."

Chara quirked a brow. "You've done it _before?_ You mean you freed the monsters?"

"Yeah. I suppose I did." Frisk tittered, scratching the back of their neck like the nervous child they were.

Chara stared, mouth slightly agape. This was news to them. The child had spoken about going through the underground multiple times and how they made it to the castle to talk to their father, but they've never actually heard that they've broken the barrier before.

Frisk must have taken their silence as a cue to elaborate because, slowly, their eyes turned vacant, staring headlong into something that was only in their mind. "The… the barrier finally broke. We were all free. Ms Toriel was going to open a school, King Asgore wanted to help by working on the school garden. All of my other friends were going to do everything that they've wanted to do for so long. And I… I was going to live with Ms Toriel. She was going to adopt me, and I was going to live a normal life I guess." They snapped out of their trance and chuckled. "Well, as normal as my life could be, right?"

Chara frowned, putting the information together and finding that logic didn't fit. "But now you're here. If you'd freed the monsters before, why did you come back? You've undone everything."

Frisk's answer was simple. "Because of you." They gave Chara a look so heavy, so compelling, Chara froze on the spot, unable to look away. "When we left the mountains, your… ghost. They told me that their wish was fulfilled. They've remained in this world because of a regret. They couldn't go until they knew that the monsters were free. And now that they were, it was time for them to move on." They shrugged, and dropping their head on the floor, sullen. "Do you remember what I told you before?"

Chara swallowed before answering, still unnerved by the look the child had given them. Those deep brown orbs were deceptively sharp: one moment they appeared sparkling with innocence and wonder, then the next they were piercing like a dagger, pinning its target down in place and digging into their soul in an instant. Chara had to wonder what the child had been through to give them such eyes. "You've told me many things, dear. You'll have to be a little more specific."

Frisk nodded in understanding. "'I just want you to be happy. That's all I want.'" They repeated the phrase from their head, and Chara recognised it as the phrase they uttered around the time of their first murder. "I've been building it, the perfect ending where everyone is happy and no one is left behind. One by one I've befriended every monster in Underground using my power, just as you've said. I found their happiness and restarted my journey to find the next person's. The first ending I got just made me happy. The next ending was me and some of my friend. Then it was me, my friends and some monsters from one area, and then me, my friends, and monsters from two areas. I kept going. I've worked… so, _so_ hard to get us to that point. For a moment, I thought I was there. I've found everyone's happiness. I've gotten our happy ending…"

Frisk trailed off, and Chara knew there was more to be said. "But you still came back." They coaxed, and the child breathed in deep, almost gasped.

"Because I realised I was missing you." The child beamed at them. "I've gotten everyone's happy ending but yours. I still had one more person to help, and so… I came back. Just like I did with the others."

Chara dare called the gesture touching, they still chuckled bitterly. "I was dead, dear. I already had my ending. I was lucky to even be an instrument to yours."

"You were more than an instrument though." Frisk insisted. "Without you, I would never have made it that far. I could never had achieved what I did. It… it wasn't fair. Everyone called _me_ a hero, but no one even remembered your name."

"Because my life was long over. No one needed to remember my name. I was just a part of an old tale, albeit a famous one from what I understand. I was the past, and you were the future. I deserved no part in it."

"But you did. _We_ were the ones who broke the barrier. _We_ were the hero. And I wanted everyone to know it."

Chara growled. _Stubborn brat._ "So what? You thought you'd restart this journey and bring back the dead? Even _you_ with your backwards brain must have realised how ridiculous that notion was? You can't go back in time to the point where I'd still been alive. I was dead long before you were even _born_. What made you think that you could do it? Under what belief did you throw away all that you'd achieved?"

Frisk stared blankly to the side. "I... I don't know."

"What do you mean, you don't know?"

"I don't know." Frisk repeated truthfully, simpering again. "I didn't know how to bring back the dead when I came back. I didn't know where to even begin."

Chara gaped at the child and the sheer lunacy they displayed. "Do you mean to tell me you gave up everything, _everything_ , to do something that you didn't even know you could accomplish?"

Frisk nodded, giggling. "Not knowing how to do things never stopped me before. When there's a will, there's a way, right?"

"But this is not…!" Chara stopped themselves short and placed a calming hand over their forehead. They swallowed and started again. "There may _never_ have been an answer. In fact, it was _very likely_ that there wouldn't have been an answer. You could have been stuck in a time-loop for all eternity, seeking for answers that didn't exist!"

"I know." Frisk shrugged. "But I couldn't give up on you. I just… couldn't."

Chara stared at them, unblinking, for a very, very long time. Then, they let out a shuddering sigh, their mind a jumbled mess. Tried as they might, they couldn't straighten all of the information out. They couldn't wrap their head around it all. "I don't understand." They voiced. "How can you be so… so…"

"Nice?"

" _Stupid_."

Frisk frowned. "I like nice better…"

Chara didn't. _Nice?_ The word didn't even come close. It was too simple a word to describe the foolish amount of… sheer goodwill this child possessed. It was inconceivable.

"Don't you get tired, dear? Of being nice, I mean?"

Frisk didn't ponder on the idea even for a bit. "Being nice feels good. If I'm nice to others, they'll be nice to me back. And when others are nice to me, I feel really great!"

"No, you silly child, if you are nice to others, they will…" Chara pressed their lips thin, a tightness echoing in their chest. They tried to speak, but the words were caught in their throat, far harder than they thought it would be. They wanted to laugh at themselves. _Shouldn't I be over this by now?_

At that moment, a small baby-soft hand folded over theirs, and they looked down to find Frisk gently patting them over the back of their hand. They gazed at the child curiously, and Frisk simply smiled back.

"If you are nice to others, they might take advantage of you…" The child began quietly, their face serene and somehow knowing. "But you can't let that get in the way of your generosity. I'm not nice to others just because I want them to be happy. I do it to make me happy as well. Nothing feels worse than knowing that what you've done made someone else sad, I think. If I tried to be mean to everyone, the guilt would be too much for me to handle. I'll probably just go crazy." They giggled at the last comment, but Chara didn't share the sentiment.

They sat, staring, gaping, their eyes hooded and lost. Everything they'd known, learned and experienced regarding the human race flooded over their mind, yet even amongst all the hate, fear and rage that swept within, the child stood in the middle of the storm, unmoving, unshaking. Chara, who had been swept along the wild current of emotions for so long, couldn't help but look at them in awe.

_How can such creature exist?_ They wondered. _Don't you have to remain strong to survive? Don't you have to hide, and remain cold?_

_Aren't you afraid of getting hurt?_

Suddenly, their chest felt tight. They were gasping, drowning and the child appeared to them like a life line, a shining ray of hope. They wanted so badly to reach out. They wanted so badly to grab the child's hand and see where they can take them.

But...

"Did you mean it?" They asked, holding themselves back, years of fear engraved into their mind lashing out again, crawling over their skin and binding them in place.

"Mean…? Mean what?"

Chara pulled their hand away, and Frisk deflated for a moment. "You said to mother that you were going to protect me with your life. Did you mean it?"

The child looked up, surprised. "Y-you were listening?"

"Please, just…" Chara bit their lips, their ears roaring with the drum of their heart. "Just answer the question. Please."

Frisk blinked at the monarch's broken tone, and withdrew their hand nervously. "Umm… yeah." They cleared their throat. "I mean, yes. I will. No matter what happens, no matter what hardships we face..." They took a long inhale, and turned to look at the monarch right in the eyes with the same, soul piercing look. "I'll be there for you. I'll support you. I'll protect you."

Chara felt another emotion shoot through their being, and their heart skipped a beat. "You are so much weaker than me, though." They reasoned.

Frisk didn't seem bothered. "Physically? Yeah, I am. But that's not the only thing that makes you strong. Everyone needs someone they can rely on. I want to be that for you. I want you to lean on me, when you can't be strong on your own."

" _I'll always be here for you."_

" _Don't worry. You're in safe hands now, kid."_

" _We'll be together forever, I promise."_

" _Take my hand, Charlotte. Trust me. We're going to be free."_

How many times have that phrase been uttered to them? Young, old, men, women, boys or girls. It didn't really matter in the end. They could never keep their promise. In the end, they all failed one way or another. It was a harsh lesson, but a lesson well learned. They must never rely on anyone but themselves.

Yet somehow, this felt different. This child felt different from all the rest. For some reason that they could not fathom, they wanted to trust them. To believe.

_Little knight,_ their mother had called the child, and the image of the kid in a little armour, decorated with the royal crest and holding a tiny wooden sword and shield popped into Chara's mind.

They laughed. It was low and hushed, but for once it wasn't bitter. It didn't leave a crude taste in their mouth. They looked at the kid, really looked at them, and found that they were glowing.

"Look at you." They spoke in awe. "You really do mean it, don't you? You'll protect me, even though you're just a baby."

Frisk nodded heartily, then furrowed their brows as they thought the words over. "Hey, I'm not a baby. We're practically the same age." They claimed, their happy little smile never leaving.

"Oh, is that a fact?" Chara quirked a brow, amused. "And how old might you be?"

"I'm _ten!"_ Frisk held out both of their outstretched hands proudly.

Chara tilted their head back in a delighted laughter. "And I, thirteen. Much older than you, don't you think?"

"Well, that's just three years difference!"

"And my, what a difference it is."

Playfully, Chara hopped off the bed and gestured Frisk to do the same. The pair stood in the middle, toe to toe, the monarch smirking down at the little child whose head only came up to their shoulder. Frisk seemed rather indignant at the difference and puffed out their cheek in defiance. It was cute honestly, and Chara laughed again.

"Such an adorable little thing. Why, you are a doll." They cooed as they brought both of their hands to cup each side of the human's cheeks. They were soft and plump with baby fat under their palm. "So soft, I could just pinch your little cheeks."

"Stop it!" Frisk protested, bursting into a fit of giggle as they grabbed both of Chara's hands before they could pinch them.

Chara giggled as well, but quickly became aware of the soft hands grabbing onto their own.

Suddenly the fears were back, and this time it was with vengeance.

_You are weak against children._ The voices whispered, each word stabbing their gut like icy shards. _You have to crush it before it becomes your downfall. You must survive. How will you survive if you attach yourself to this kid?_

Memories of a long past flashed by. Faces of little children, looking up to them with bright smiles filled their heart and warmed them from within. Then, in a flash, the images all blended together into a swirl of thick, oozing red, and disappeared into the void, leaving Chara colder than ever.

They frozen, and felt an overwhelming urge to push Frisk away. Yet their hands betrayed them and remained stone still. They chewed on their lips, furiously thinking of something they could say or do to bring themselves to detach away from the child.

Frisk's giggling trailed off as well when they noticed the cloud forming over their partner and the panicked look marring their features. They followed Chara's gaze down, and found their intertwined hand.

They looked back up.

Deep brown met blood red, and held there for several, petrified moments.

"Chara?" The child voiced, concerned.

The monarch didn't speak, didn't blink, and didn't breathe. Everything was so far away now. They were slipping away from reality. They couldn't hear, they couldn't feel the child's soft skin on theirs, their sight was growing dim, darkness crawling around the edge of their vision, prepared to swallow them whole.

Then a quiet laugh shattered through them all. And Chara found themselves back, able to see, hear and breathe again. They looked down, and found Frisk smiling at them.

"Me and my Chara used to hold hands a lot, you know?" The child began, holding Chara's hands firm. "I think they didn't like it so much, but it made me feel safe, and that was enough for them to offer me their hand every time we were alone. That's the type of person you are, I think. You can be harsh and cruel to people you hate, but to your friends you are the most trustworthy, most reliable person around." Slowly, they've brought their hand up, bringing Chara's pale one along close to their face, almost marvelling at the flawless skin.

Then, before Chara could comprehend what was happening, Frisk kissed the back of their hand.

They gasped at the contact, but didn't pull back. It was a butterfly kiss, the child's lips small and so very soft. The moment their skins touched, Chara felt their entire body jolt as though they'd been shocked. Everything was washed away, all the crude thoughts and voices clawing at their mind, the jagged cold that had enveloped their body. Everything was so warm at that moment, and it wasn't... unpleasant. Not at all. And perhaps that was what shocked them the most.

The child pulled back and smiled. It was a small smile, not at all like the foolish grin they wore most of the time.

It was mature, confident, and so very dashing.

"You've protected me for so long." They continued. "I relied on you countless times, and you came through for me without fail. So…" They lowered one knee to the floor, their gaze never breaking, and still holding on to the monarch's hand. "So I wish to protect you this time. I swear on my life that I will always be there for you. I will always stand by your side whenever you need me. And I will never give up on you. No matter how much you push me away, no matter how cruel you be to me. I will never, _ever_ leave you."

Chara didn't know what to say, so they focused their attention to their hand, sandwiched between a pair of smaller, baby ones that held onto it as though it was their ticket to paradise. It was warm, comforting, and it enveloped everything about them. Their hand, their body, their heart, their soul.

"You fool…" They hissed, even though their eyes were getting misty. "You naive, simpering fool. How can you say all these things after everything I've done?"

"All of my friends tried to kill me in some way or another. It's not a big deal."

_Not a big deal they say._ Chara shook their head. "I've tortured you, murdered you. I broke your bones and tore out your tongue."

"Yeah you did. But I _really_ don't hold any grudges or regrets." Frisk reiterated without missing a beat, as though it was all just another day's news. "You, me, mum, dad, every monster, every human; everyone has done something wrong in the past, no matter how small or big it is, and I believe we all deserve another chance. "

Chara didn't know what to say, so they said the first thing that came to their head. "You are... a very strange child."

"So I've been told." Frisk shrugged as they stood up.

Chara stared, amazed for one more moment before sighing out loud.

How had it gotten to this, they asked themselves. It was only yesterday that they were wary of the human, trying to kick them out of their house with everything they had, and all of the sudden there was shouting, fighting, crying, and now they were having a perfectly civil conversation, albeit with a few waterworks and a lot more emotions. _Was this how it went with everyone who meets Frisk?_ The child had a dangerous charm to them it seemed, and as much as they wanted to deny it, Chara had fallen under it too, and found themselves…

They looked down at the child who was grinning obliviously, and felt a surge of protectiveness within them.

_Protective of a HUMAN. Haven't you been through enough to know that this is a bad idea?_

They had. Yet despite their logical mind yelling, screaming at them not to, Chara found themselves moving their other hand and placed it over the child's head, petting them.

Frisk's smile widened, half in surprise and half in joy. Their deep brown orbs sparkled with a hint of hope. A large part of Chara told them they should crush it, reminding them that it was kinder to hurt them now when they were still young so that they will learn not to make the same mistake in the future. Yet another part, a smaller, but no less vocal part, told them to nurture it, for all those who never got the chance.

Perhaps this child was the one who will make it in the end.

"Well, I... I suppose I should be thanking you then." Chara announced as they pulled away, not in the mood to think anymore. "But first, I'm going to apologise to mother for my behaviour. She must be worried sick."

"Oh, I'll come with you." Frisk insisted, but Chara shook their head.

"No, you stay. I'll be back right after. We have much to talk about, after all. I wish to know every detail about this… 'perfect ending' of yours, and put a plan m into motion to achieve as soon as possible."

Frisk appeared dumbfounded, like they couldn't believe what they were hearing. Their face morphed into a joyous smile, their whole body exhuming so much excitement it was a wonder how they weren't bouncing up and down yet. "O-okay! Yeah, I'll wait!"

Chara snorted at the sudden energy radiating off the kid. "Sit tight, little one. I'll be back very soon."

"Yeah, okay. See you soon." Frisk waved, then added in an excited voice. "Everything will be okay, Chara. We'll break the barrier together, and this time everyone will be happy. No one will be left behind!"

Chara shook their head, and simply grinned as they closed the door.

* * *

Chara entered the kitchen and found Toriel washing the dishes, her expression deep in thought. They sighed, and took in a deep breath in anticipation for what they were about to do. They knew they were in a bit of a mood this morning, but the cold display they've used on their mother was simply appalling, worthy of a severe punishment according to their standard. _Well, there is no point in delaying, I suppose. Time to face the music._

"Mother?" They called out, stepping into the room.

Toriel turned with a start and rushed over to them in an instant. "Oh, Chara. Are you alright?" She fussed as she brushed her furry hands over their cheek.

The warm reception gave Chara a touch of relief, and they leaned into the touch, savouring the affection.

"I'm alright, mother. I'm sorry for the way I acted. It was beyond rude and I have no excuse for it."

Toriel shook her head. "No, it is alright, my sweet. I was simply worried for you more than anything."

"Then I am sorry for worrying you." Chara continued, feeling guilty.

Toriel sighed, leaning back. "It cannot be helped. I am your mother. It is my duty to worry."

"Oh." Chara said simply, soothed by her words and feeling loved. Then, they remembered something and snorted a laugh. "Well, if that's the case, then I suppose I am not sorry."

Toriel gasped slapped their shoulder. "Cheeky!" She accused feeling all the tension leave her with a laugh. "You should not follow your father's example like that." She peered behind her child. "Where is Frisk?"

"They are in the room. I've insisted that I bring us some snack." Chara replied smoothly, not wanting to admit that they came specifically to apologise, and also to get some air before they talked with the kid again.

"You did?" Toriel blinked.

Chara's brows furrowed. "You seem surprised?"

"Well, yes. I mean, I did not expect you to be..." She stammered. "Are you two getting along well?"

"For now, it appears yes." Chara gave a dismissive shrug.

"Chara." Toriel said with a warning tone.

Chara sighed. They should have known that their mother would push the issue. Children must all get along in her eyes. She was such a mother.

"We're okay, mother. We've had a bit of talk and came to an agreement." They abbreviated the situation into a single sentence, though it wasn't that far from the truth. Really, all they've done in their room was talk. No killing or no torturing of any kind.

"And now? Are you two making friends?"

_Friends?_ Chara blinked at the word. _Is that what we are now?_

They pondered on their answer, running their conversation over in their mind again.

They came to a conclusion shortly after. "No. Not exactly."

"Chara." Toriel warned again.

"Mother, you can't just expect me to become friends with a stranger at drop of a hat." They hissed, but Toriel seemed to recognise something and tilted her head.

"But you do not hate them either." She claimed, taking Chara by surprise. "Or else you would not be here providing them snacks."

Chara pursed their lips. She had them there.

"No, I don't hate them." They admitted. "I don't think I ever did. I was just… cautious of them. You do remember what I've told you about the human race?"

"Yes, I do." Toriel nodded reluctantly, recalling the many times where Chara went on a full rant about the humans. She wanted to point out that after a few encounters with the humans herself, she didn't find them all that bad. But she thought better than to kick a hornet's nest.

"Well, I have been thinking about it a lot. I've watched them yesterday, the child, remembering what I've seen and known about the human kind and compared it to their behaviour. I've watched them interact with other monsters, and as you have stated before, I could not find any ill intent of kind. While I hate to admit this… I think they only wish us good." - _wish ME good in particular-_ "They are…"

"They are...?" Toriel coaxed.

" _Nice._ " They grounded out the word with some difficulty, then sighed. "It occurs to me that I don't really know much about them. And I _have_ been taught not to judge a book by its cover, no matter how obvious the plot may seem."

"... And therefore?" Toriel pushed once more after a pause.

Chara sighed again. "And _therefore_ , I am willing to give them a chance to prove themselves. If they play their cards right, I will decide if they are worthy of being called my friend."

Toriel smiled knowingly. "Do you like them?"

Chara flushed a slight. "'Like' is such a strong word. I'm… 'okay' with them, I prefer to say."

"I see." Toriel nodded, smiling much to their embarrassment. "I am glad."

"Of course you would be." They scoffed, and moved over to the fridge, shaking their head. "Now, I was thinking a chocolate bar will do us very well." They opened the door, and peeked inside for the said snack. Their eyes quickly came across a old blue box, and sparkled in delight. "Ah, Bolsters! You still have them around. Fantastic!"

They quickly reached in and pulled out two bars from the box, and closed the door. They turned around, and immediately came face to face with their mother who raised a stern brow at them.

They smiled. "Yes, mother?"

Toriel didn't say anything and just stared.

They tried to hold their act, but soon cowered before her look. With an exasperated huff, they opened the fridge again and placed one chocolate bar back. Toriel's stern look vanished and she suddenly appeared very pleased.

Chara huffed again. "I hope you realise that these bars are packed in that size for a reason? They're all one person's serving."

"One _adult's_ serving, you mean." Toriel retorted, returning to her dishes. "Half a bar is enough sugar for you and the child."

Chara rolled their eyes. "Ugh, very well."

They walked over to the kitchen cupboards and began checking them one by one. When they've opened the forth and last drawer and found that it only contained a single key. Frowning, they turned to Toriel.

"Mother?" They called out, **Where are the knives?**

Chara jumped, slapping their hand over their mouth. Toriel turned to them, a serene smile on her face. "Yes, my sweet?"

They blinked, feeling a sudden chill crawling on their back. "Umm, did you hear that?"

Toriel seemed confused. "No, I do not think I did. Did you say something?"

_I'm… not sure._ They thought. "No, I… Hmm, no. I was just wondering where the knife was. I wanted to cut the wrapping in half as well, so not to make a mess with the crumbs."

"Oh, I see. Yes, I washed it before you came. It is dry now so you can go ahead and use it." Toriel pulled out the kitchen knife and handed it over, pushing the handle out first. "Be careful with the blade. It can be deceptively sharp."

"Yes… Yes, of course." Chara grabbed the utensil with a small thanks, and placed the chocolate bar over the counter to cut it in half. They paused when they noticed the tip of the blade swinging side to side.

_Am I shaking?_

They willed their limb to freeze and it did. When they un-tensed, the knife wasn't shaking anymore.

"Is something the matter?"

Chara turned to their mother who was looking at them with concern. They shook their head, reassuring her. "No, not at all." They quickly cut the bar in half, and handed the knife back, mumbling another thank you in the process. "We'll be in the room if you need us."

With that they grabbed the two pieces of candy and headed back to their room, wondering what that had been about. They had spoken in their head instead of out loud, and the voice, while it was still theirs, had been strangely hoarse and gurgled, as though they had spoken with a mouthful of hot water.

_Strange,_ they thought, but didn't put much more thoughts to it afterwards. They had more important business to take care of, after all. _Giving every monster in Underground their happy ending. This should be interesting._

* * *

"So…?"

Sans eyed the report in hand, running through the graphs and the symbols, trying to decipher what they could mean. He flipped through the pages, making references in his mind and linking each information to another in order to create a greater meaning. Eventually, he shook his head and sighed.

"i got nothing."

Alphys' shoulders sagged. "Nothing?"

"nothing." Sans reaffirmed. "there definitely has been some time manipulations yesterday, but that's it. doesn't really tell us much on what they could mean."

If possible, Alphys seemed to deflate further. "Should we do something?"

"eh, not really. we don't have a clue on who did it or where it happened or even why. besides, even if we do find them, there's not much we can do. for all we know, we already found the person who did this and they jumped back in time to escape."

"Can we do _anything_ then?"

"nope. we are up a creek. get it? cus your lab is just up stream from waterfall?"

Alphys stared at him incredulously.

"eh, i guess that was weak."Sans tucked his hands into his jacket's pocket and began walking out of the lab.

"W-wait, where are you going?" Alphys skittered after him.

"uhh… i'm going to do... my guard duty?" Sans lied poorly.

"B-but, what about the spike? Shouldn't we tell someone about it?"

"i don't think so. asgore usually trusts me to deal with the timey-wimey stuff. and i say, we should just let it be."

Alphys tapped her fingers together nervously, unconvinced. "I… I don't know, Sans. I feel so helpless."

"alphys, buddy, relax. i'm telling you it's not that big of a deal. i'm sure everything will be alright. and if it isn't, i'm sure we'll know about it when it hits us all right in the gut!"

"That… doesn't sound too reassuring."

"that's the spirit. now go and scrounge for that mmk 3 rumours. there's a convention, i heard, and their website is doing a live stream of some announcement."

Alphys jittered for another second, before sighing, tension leaving her shoulders. "Alright. I guess you're right." She smiled gratefully. "Thanks for coming, Sans."

"no problem. listen, keep an eye out for those spikes again and call me if you need me alright?"

"I will. You never pick up your phone, though."

"but you know i always come when you need me." Sans winked, and with one last wave of his hand disappeared out the door.

* * *

Sans reappeared in his private lab, his eyes sunken back into his socket once more. He quickly threw the report that he secretly snatched from Alphys' lab onto the desk and opened his joke book on the side. He slammed both of his hands down on the table, and began furiously scanning through the report once more.

He lied to Alphys. It was true that he couldn't decipher who or what had caused the manipulation, but given enough information, he could roughly find out _where_ the point of return was. One or two occurrences wasn't enough, but thirty manipulation in such a short time frame? He pretty much hit jackpot.

It took him some time, some scribbling on papers was done to cross reference the data and he applied multiples of formulas that his joke book contained to get the correct numbers. But after almost half an hour of searching and calculating, he deciphered it. He placed the his chicken scratches down and grabbed a map. His boney finger traced over the paper meticulously, going through each street and landmark until it stopped at a particular location that all the numbers pointed towards.

The Ruins.

"aw crap…" He mumbled, his mind immediately going towards the old lady behind the door. Was she somehow part of this? Did she know what was going on? He had told Alphys not to worry, but he himself could not stop either. There was certainly no evidence as to whether or not if the manipulator had ill will towards others, but at this point, the possibility was fifty-fifty. And fifty percent was a huge number in terms of statistics.

Suddenly, there was a loud bang, and Sans jumped back in start.

The Machine was shaking, rumbling with life as bright white light seeped from underneath the covers.

Sans was in shock, almost gaping at the machine he'd thought long dead. He wanted to reach out and peel back its covers, but the noise, this loud, booming noise that sounded like a large anvil being struck in a confined, echoing room, it was so loud, he was forced to plug up his ears in fear that he'd go deaf. The light didn't get brighter, but it certainly did get hotter. He looked away, shielding his bones from the intense heat.

_the notes!_ He thought, but there was no more time. He had to get out before he got burned alive.

Then as quickly as it started, the sound died. The machine stopped moving, the light had disappeared as well as the heat. It didn't whirl down to a stop like most machines did. It just… flickered off as though someone had turned off the tv.

Sans uncovered his ears and listened.

Silence.

He nearly ran towards the machine and was about to grab the sheet off it, when he noticed all the dust covering it. With the amount of shaking and rumbling the machine did, one would think that the dust would have all been flown off, and if not that, the heat would have surely burnt the layer, as well as the sheet, to crisp. But no. The cover was unharmed, as dirty as ever, as though nothing had ever happened.

Sans hesitated, but only for a moment. He grabbed the fabric and threw it off to the side, making sure to fling as little dust in the air as possible.

The old, rusting machine greeted him, as broken and dead as ever. But there was also something else with it.

There, sitting on the main 'mouth' of the machine, was a bony white hand that appeared so very familiar, that Sans feared to make the connection. He reached out, ever so slowly, his own bony hand clammy with cold sweat.

Then he froze.

For a moment he thought he was seeing things, his body pumping with so much adrenaline that his mind was half addled and his eyes were seeing doubles. But it wasn't. His hand, his bony white hand, when placed near the hand sitting on the machine, was an exact copy of it. Same colour, same size, same skeletal structure for each bone and joint.

This disembodied hand that appeared out of thin air, was his.

And now he was left to wonder, where did the rest of the body go?

He withdrew his hand, and shoved it into his pocket, his eye sockets empty as the darkness of space. He sighed, despite the cold sweat pouring down his head.

"crap… i guess i won't be having any naps today then."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: And here is the start of ACT 2.**
> 
> **I actually wanted Chara and Frisk to leave the Ruins by the end of this chapter, but felt that their relationship hadn't been solidified enough that they would be off saving the world together (of course there were several ways around this, but I couldn't get it down on paper properly, and I didn't know how to continue it). Now, I could be wrong on this and possibly have made the wrong decision, but I'll never find out just sitting on my thumb all day, you know?**
> 
> **Anyway, I'll let you guys decide on that, and I'll hopefully have the next chapter ready in two weeks as usual.**
> 
> **Ciao!**
> 
> **Ideas that were abandoned for this chapter: Chara flashback, Chara's zany introduction to cellphone and modern pop, and Old Spice Commercial**
> 
> **Up next: Toriel blocks the way...**


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Hey, remember when I said I'll see you guys in 2 weeks?**
> 
> **I lied.** (◉▽◉)
> 
> **I'm sorry.** (._.)
> 
> **Well, this chapter is actually twice as long as any other chapters, so you could say that this is a double release. So essentially: I'm really, REALLY sorry for the delay. Here's a double length chapter to make it up to you.**
> 
> **Thank you for everyone who's commented. I know I don't reply to them these days, but that's because I just don't know what to say besides a HUGE "Thank you so SO much". They make me think, they make me smile, and believe it or not, it does affect me on how I write. They help me improve, and they help me get in the mood for writing more. I just can't thank you all enough.**
> 
> **I must admit, I rushed a bit in the end but I can't seem to think of a way to fix it (unless I took a look at it in about a week or so, which I _definitely_ do not want to do). I write/revise/edit this story all on my own, so all mistakes and funky bits are mine.**
> 
> **So now, here be Chapter 7. Onwards!**
> 
> **P.S. Under a reader's suggestion, who I thought had a very good point, I tried writing Sans and Paps' dialogues in normal cases. Unfortunately, when I actually did it, I personally felt... really weirded out, so I sort of abandoned it. But that's just my opinion, you know? If you can, please comment on whether or not you'd like me to stop using all uppercase for Paps, and all lowercase for Sans. You're the reader, and if it helps the story read better for the majority, I'll do it (It's no biggie for me. I can write their dialogue the way I like first, then edit the cases before uploading)**
> 
> **Anyway, as I was saying: Onwards!**

* * *

"... And that's how we break the barrier! Whadda you say to _that_?"

"I think I should throw you off a bridge."

_Huh. Was that too tactless?_ It probably was. Yet Chara couldn't bring themselves to regret their words. Not with what they've been subjected to so far.

They've been sitting there for the past hour and a half, listening to the child yammer on about how they've destroyed the barrier in the previous timeline, and they liked to think that they've been very patient so far: They've pressed down on most of the scoffs, the sneers and blatant insults, and managed to be the perfect host. They've only asked minimal questions when things started making absolutely no sense (which was difficult to decide considering everything the child said was complete lunacy most of the time), such as when the child told them that showing up on a gameshow with a sentient robot was an _essential_ part of the barrier breaking process, or not a few minutes ago when the child sort of ended the list saying that fighting their father and convincing him not to kill humans will lead to the barrier breaking… _somehow_. Chara knew that there were information that the child did not wish to tell them, they said it themselves: They thought the monarch wasn't _ready_ for it, whatever the hell that meant, and honestly Chara was okay with that. Knowing the future just seemed like a huge burden and would have made them question their every decision, making them think of what _should_ be, rather than what _must_ be. But despite their rather generous amount of patience, there _was_ a limit to things. And Frisk, unfortunately, had reached it.

"What? Why?" The child frowned, blinking at the unexpected response.

"Because _you,_ my dear, are raving mad, and I should put you out of your misery while I can. It'll be the humane thing to do."

"Hey, I'm not!" They jumped, pouting. "This is all true. I've done this _several_ times before."

Chara was too appalled to even scoff. They snatched the note from the child's hand, slapped it open to a random page and began listing out the items. "'Teach dog how to pet other dogs'? 'Have a flexing contest with Aaron'? 'Shake our hips at every Moldsmal that we come across'?!"

"Oh, I'm really good at that one!"

"I don't care if you hold the Guinness World's Record at 'shaking your hips'! How does any of this equate to breaking the barrier?!"

"It's not just about breaking the barrier, remember? It's about making every monster in the Underground have a better life." Frisk huffed, crossing their arms.

The notepad opened again. "'Make Shyren give up on her dreams'?"

"She's too shy for the pop idol life. She wouldn't have been happy. More money and fame doesn't mean a better life."

"And 'Pick on Astigmatism'?"

"He will literally ask you to pick on him. It's what he wants and he does _not_ take no for an answer, trust me."

Chara leaned back, pinching the bridge of their nose to fend off the impending migraine. They couldn't do this anymore. When they had agreed to listen to the child's plan, they had expected themselves to be skeptical, knowing that whatever it was that Frisk did, it'll be unusual, unconventional, and unbelievable, but they weren't prepared for this. Nothing could have prepared them for this. That half a bar of chocolate they were granted helped but it was nowhere enough to get them through. They were going to need at least half a dozen more.

"Okay." They began slowly. "For the sake of my own sanity, let's say that we are giving them a better life by doing all of… _this,_ and I am indeed the last person to object to such noble deeds. _But_ I still don't understand how all of _this_ leads to us breaking the barrier. _This!_ I just don't… I just... _How?_ "

"Well, it all adds up. Every little good deed we do makes us friends with every monster we face. And every friend we make is a soul contributing to power our cause. We have to bring everyone together. It's the only way to break the barrier for good."

"That's _it_? Well, I don't know if you know this but monsters have done that before, dear. Many times in fact. They've all come together and poured out their magic on the barrier under father's order. They wished and hoped and dreamed... and every time it all turned up for naught." Chara breathed deep and sagged, feeling the weight of their kingdom's depression sink on them as their own. Their tight expression released their anger and turned into one of exhaustion. "Without the human souls the barrier is unbreakable."

Frisk knelt down, and ducked down to meet their down-trodden eyes with their soft brown. "But we do have them. Six of them, remember? Or at least Mr Dreemurr does. With six human souls and the collective magic of every monster in existence, we _can_ break the barrier."

Chara stared into the child's sparkling brown orbs for a moment, then began mulling over the idea. It did sound somewhat plausible in theory, but everyone had thought the same when they decided to try the whole 'combine magic' thing in the first place. They wanted to believe in the child, they truly did, if only for their people's benefit. Yet every time they even thought of what they've been writing down for the past hour and a half, their mind immediately switched on the 'skeptic' mode and simply screamed 'lies!'. The things the child had written down were so far-fetched and ridiculous, they appeared more like tasks to distract one from the mass depression plaguing the kingdom rather than solving it.

"I don't know, dear. I just…" Chara raised a palm over their forehead. "There are so many nonsense here. Are you _sure_ that this is what you did to break the barrier? What if all of these are just things that you _thought_ helped out but in reality they were just you running about willy nilly?"

Frisk stood up and placed their hands on their hip. "Hey, who's the one that broke the barrier here?"

"Well, you. But-"

"And if it was only one or even a few things that you had to do to break the barrier, don't you think someone else might have figured it out already?"

Chara scowled. "I'll appreciate you not cut me off next time. It's terribly rude."

"Rude, but am I right?" Frisk bounced smoothly.

The monarch growled, annoyed. "Well, what if you're not? What if we're wasting our time and we no longer have the means to break the barrier? What then?"

Frisk smiled at the monarch's skepticism, as though they'd been expecting it all along. They plopped themselves down besides Chara, on the floor with their back resting on the side of the bed. "We can't hesitate on our decision based on 'what if's." They said softly. "Trust me. We can do it. We _will_ do it. And if it doesn't happen to work, we can always come back here right? That's the thing about time travel. We have infinite chance. Probability says we can't fail."

"Infinite chance does not equate to infinite attempts." Chara huffed. "There is a point where one will either give up or go completely insane."

"Hey, I'm still here."

"Yes, but you're insane. You want to be friends with _me_ of all people."

"Hey, you're plenty nice." Frisk defended.

"And there you have your proof. You are a deranged lunatic who needs to be locked up." Chara deadpanned but it proved futile against the bubbly child. Frisk's little smile was so bright right then, the monarch feared they'd get burnt by the sheer brilliance of it. They turned away with a huff and after a few seconds of brooding, they finally gave up. "Ugh. _Very well._ We'll stick with your so called 'plan'. It's not like we have any other options anyway. I suppose if this doesn't break the barrier, it'll at least make some people... 'happy' somehow."

If possible, Frisk's smile got even brighter, and they leaned their head closer to Chara's shoulder. Closer, but not exactly touching. "Thank you. I promise, you won't regret it. You'll see."

Chara huffed again, but whisked their sight to the child from the corner of their eyes, watching them relax as best as they could in their odd leaning position, as though they were resting their head against the monarch's shoulder.

They had always done their best to avoid actual contact when they could. They were trying to be considerate, something Chara was very grateful for as they were still trying to sort out how they felt about it all.

Ever since they'd first met, Chara realised in both horror and fascination that brushing skin with the child made them feel… nothing. Which was saying a lot, as normally they associated any sort of physical contact with a human in a less than positive light. That little kiss on their hand wasn't… _un_ pleasant, that was for sure. They couldn't help feel a little curious about it: The prospect of letting their skins touch, if only for a moment.

If only they had a good excuse to tell the child it was okay to touch a little without… well, actually telling them that? Maybe they could start with something small first, like brushing their hand with each other a little every now and then? _I wonder what will happen if I just cut off their hand and held it? Would I feel nothing again, or does it have to be attached to the kid?_

"Umm…." Frisk hummed rather loudly and Chara looked to see their pale face staring up with an uneasy smile. "N-no hand cutting. Please?"

_Crap._ "How... much did you hear?" Chara stammered, their cheeks filling a rosy red at the thought that the child might have heard their curiosity for a skin on skin contact.

"I blocked out most of it out, but that last part was particularly loud. I'm sorry, I wanted to keep your privacy."

"Oh." They suppressed a sigh of relief. "No dear. It is I who should apologise. It wasn't… well, it was exactly as it sounded, but I didn't mean it in a bad way."

"Cutting my hand off is not bad?"

Chara winced. _Yes, alright, that does sound bad._

Thinking quickly, they tried to appease the pallid child by placing their hand on top of theirs. It was a terrible idea considering what the child had been worrying over, but besides the light flinch at the touch, Frisk quickly took the hand like a lifeline, their cold, lingering fear becoming mixed by warm comfort.

Chara shook their head. Frisk was fearful yet being clingy with them at the same time. How did that even work? _Such a strange child._ They mused. _But at least they're easy to please._ "I think you should take it as a compliment, dear. You have a very pretty hand. I was simply envious."

"Oh, okay." Frisk mumbled with a blush, and Chara could feel happiness slap over the fear like a splash of paint. "Thank you, I think? I don't think my hand will suit you though. They're kinda small."

"Ha, indeed." Chara laughed, then peered down at their intertwined hand curiously.

Nothing. They didn't feel any of the usual repulsiveness that came with the sensation of human flesh rubbing against their own.

They leaned back, taking their eyes off the child and staring at the blank wall ahead, just… feeling. _Hm. I guess this isn't too bad._

"So…" Frisk started, cutting through the silence and their thoughts.

"So?"

"When should we start? The plan, I mean."

It was a good question. Chara picked up the notepad, flicking it to the first item on the list. Their expression sobered at the sight, having pushed the item to the back of their mind since the beginning. They didn't argue with the fact that it was there. It needed to be done, no matter what the situation was. They've simply refused to think about it until it was truly necessary, which, unfortunately, was now.

' _Talk to Ms Toriel and convince her to let us go. Note: She will be sad :('_

"Soon, my dear." They replied in a quiet tone, dread filling them within, "Let's get this over with."

* * *

#  **Chapter 7**

' _What is it?'_

Sans tapped the base of the pen on his shin, looking down at the question he just wrote, down at the disembodied hand, then back to the question. He narrowed his eyes, shook his head and proceeded to write down the answer.

' _It's a hand. Duh.'_

The next question came easily.

' _Who's hand is it?'_

And so did the answer.

' _Mine, but not mine. Time travel?'_

He scratched his head, then continued on.

' _How did the machine work?'_

' _Didn't work. Must have worked from the other side. Still broken on this side.'_

' _Why did the heat not burn anything?'_

' _Not sure. Maybe only exists on the other side. Don't know why I felt it though.'_

' _Why is the hand here?'_

He paused. No immediate answers came so he moved on.

_'Who sent it?'_

_'Me...?'_

_'What if it wasn't? The implication is disturbing.'_

_'Why send a hand at all? Why not a disk or a post-it note? There are less dramatic ways to send a message.'_

_'Is it a message?'_

_'What is it if not a message?'_

_'A warning. From an ally or foe?'_

_'Can't tell.'_

_'Too many unknowns.'_

_'Too many variables.'_

_'Not. Enough. Information.'_

The pen came to a halt with a hard press on the last dot. Sans sighed and threw the pen aside, leaning back on his chair as he eyed the hand that sat on the desk like a morbid decoration.

He knew he should get a protective container for it or whatever, but in all honesty, he just wanted a break. He hadn't tried to investigate anything in so long, just starting the whole brainstorming session was giving him a headache. How awesome it would be if he was at Grillby's right now, having some hot mushroom burger with a side of fries. Or he could be at one of his 'guard posts' getting a bit of late morning nap. He was sure that whoever sent the hand wouldn't much appreciate him ignoring the appendage but really, who'd rather stare at their disembodied hand rather than having some good food and rest?

A thought occurred to him. _Is that why my hand was sent? Because I'll be less likely to ignore it?_

Well a fat load of good _that_ did. If they, whoever they are, _really_ wanted him to pay attention, they wouldn't have used his own hand. They would have used one of his friends or even better, his brother's. The idea made his insides squirm but it was the truth. His own hand was a strong medium of message, but there could have been many more options that would have worked better.

Sans blinked. Then he straightened up in his chair, his eyes pressing into a worried frown as another, more horrifying thought came to him.

_What if there were no other options left?_

A shiver ran down his spine that had nothing to do with the subzero temperature of his lab. He snatched up the hand in haste and began re-examining the appendage for the eighth time that hour. It was so similar, the size and the shape. One would it an expected outcome seeing how this was indeed _his_ hand, but the level of similarity implied something else. This hand didn't seem a year older than the one still attached to his body. If the machine had indeed worked for its originally intended purpose, he was going to find himself without a hand very soon.

He couldn't imagine what could possibly happen in the coming future where he would lose his freaking hand. Everything in Underground was mundane as ever. The King was gardening, the royal guards training, Mettatton's fan base grew by one in the past week, and the people were just pushing through day to day lives, looking forward to a brighter future that may or may not come in their lifetime.

_The time manipulations, though._ Sans considered thoughtfully. Whatever was happening in the Ruins could be fact, it was most likely that it was. The timing was too perfect for it to be otherwise.

He sagged into the chair, lifting the hand over his head.

"come on, me. what are you trying to say?" He drawled at it, and as expected, the appendage remained unresponsive.

The door decided to be very vocal in its stead.

"SANS!" The door burst open as though been kicked, and through it marched in Papyrus, donned in his royal guard armor, pristine clean after the waxing he no doubt gave it all night. He turned his head left and right and lifted an accusing finger when he found his brother sitting on his chair, hands in his pocket, lazing about as always. "AH HA! I KNEW YOU'D BE HERE! IT'S TIME FOR US TO ATTEND TO OUR GUARD DUTY! NO SLACKING OFF THIS TIME, I SWEAR IT!"

Sans greeted his brother with a shrug. "hey, i told ya paps: i wasn't slacking off. i was just meditating really hard."

"ABOUT WHAT?" Papyrus challenged, his eyes narrowing to a slit.

"sleeping?" Sans shrugged again.

"A VERY LIKELY STORY! HOWEVER, I HAVE SEEN THE CLOUDS OF 'Z'S THAT FLOATED OUT YOUR NOSE AND TEETH! YOU WERE WITHOUT A DOUBT NAPPING ON DUTY, AND THEREFORE... SLACKING!"

"well, i guess you could say that i'm the… slack _king_ of my job."

Sans gave a pause for the laughter to come, or rather, the groans. But neither came, and he was surprised to find his brother looking at him with what seemed like concern in his eyes.

"uhh… i think that's your cue to groan at me?"

"SANS, ARE YOU OKAY?"

He blinked. "uhh… yeah, of course i am. why wouldn't i be?" He stuttered, caught off guard by the question.

Papyrus tilted his head. "I DON'T KNOW. YOU HAVEN'T MADE A SINGLE PUN THIS MORNING, AND NOW THAT YOU'VE DONE IT, IT'S NOT EVEN WORTH A SMALL GROAN. THERE SEEMS TO BE SOMETHING OFF ABOUT YOU."

Sans chuckled. He forgot that his brother could be quite perceptive when it came to his friends and family. "aw, shucks paps. thanks for looking out for me, but i'm fine. i just realised that i've been using the same puns for a while now. i ran out of all the good stuff and i felt that it was time for me to take a break and come back fresh, you know?"

"SINCE WHEN DO YOU RUN OUT OF PUNS?" Papyrus quizzed. "SANS, IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING TROUBLING YOU, JUST TELL ME, OKAY?"

Sans grinned, though the smile didn't quite catch up to his eyes. "thanks bro. but really, i'm fine." A glint caught in his eyes, and his grin became wider, more real. "i guess that my pun reserves are just... _bone-dry_ right now."

"HA! THERE YOU GO!" Papyrus smiled, then as the realisation dawned on him, he immediately scowled. "I MEAN, OH MY GOD! I TAKE IT BACK, YOU'RE PERFECTLY FINE. LET'S GET OUT OF HERE BEFORE YOU MAKE US BOTH LATE!"

"yes sir." Sans mock saluted his brother out but instead of following him, he kicked his feet and rolled the chair over to his desk's drawer. He fished out his hands out from his pocket, all three of them, and placed the disembodied one into the said drawer.

He didn't want to go to his human watching duty, not only because he just didn't want to, but because he wanted to study the hand a bit more. There was something there, he knew there was: some sort of clue that could give a hint on what had, or rather, _will_ happen. But for now he'd have to listen to his brother. Papyrus was like a hawk when he put his mind to it. It would be very difficult to study the appendage with him behind his back all the time.

"SANS! HURRY UP!" Papyrus' yelled from outside.

"yes sir." Sans drawled a reply once more. _besides_ , he thought. _it would be a good opportunity to chat with the lady behind the door again. she might have some insight to what might be happening in the Ruins._

He rolled over to the door on his desk chair, hopped off and gave it a gentle kick, letting it roll back over to his desk. In the end it didn't even make it half way, and all Sans did was shrug and walk out the door, locking it firmly behind him.

* * *

The book dropped to the floor with a heavy thud, jolting Toriel from her daze. She mumbled an apology and knelt down to grab the tome back. She sat back up and stared at her children with a bewildered look once more.

"I… beg your pardon?"

Chara and Frisk looked at one another worriedly before the former spoke up. "We wish to leave the Ruins and enter Underground."

Toriel felt her heart drop yet again but managed to hold on to her book this time. She suddenly had the need to sit down, which was quite unfortunate seeing how she already was. Perhaps a drink was what she needed. She hadn't touched a single glass of wine since the day she became a mother after all. Maybe it was time to break the record? She blinked once, then twice, trying to see if this was a terrible nightmare she found herself in. It wasn't.

She licked her lips and gulped down her dry throat. "Of course. M-May I ask why you wish to do that?" She stuttered, her voice less stable than a house of cards on a trampoline.

"To go home, of course, back to the castle and to our people. You must know that I need to go and learn the ways of the new world?"

"But you can do that here can you not?" She spoke much too quickly. _Too eager._ She scolded herself and took a moment to reinforce her composure, "I may not have much here but I have all the necessary materials for a child's education and growth. You will find no better environment for your well being than this."

"But be that as it may, I cannot simply stay _here_ all my life. I am a monarch! I must familiarise with my people if I am to be a ruler in the future." Chara reasoned, and she couldn't help but smile piteously at their naivety. They didn't realise how much the world had changed, how much the kingdom has changed.

"Oh my sweet, the world is not what it was. The monarchy is… less important now than you remember. Why, I have been here for sixty years, and I have found that the kingdom is no worse than it has been."

"But neither is it any better." Her child countered with a slight rising tone, and immediately the smaller human placed a supportive hand on their arm. The two seemed to share a look again, and from where she was sitting, it appeared as though they were communicating with each other through their eyes alone. It was something she wanted to note with more interest and investigate just what was going on between the two, but before she could formulate any questions to ask, Chara brushed the child off gently and continued, notably calmer, "And that also brings me to another point of this trip: It's father. I wish to meet him. We must tell him of my return."

She stopped, her hands gripping hard at her book as her heart did a flip at the mention of her ex-husband. Truth be told, she had known that this question was coming. She knew this whole conversation was coming really. It was only logical that Chara would want to go home after waking up in an unfamiliar place where everything had changed so much. Her presence helped, but it was a band aid upon a wound that required a full bandage. Her child wanted to be where they felt most safe, most familiar. She just wasn't prepared for them to want to go so soon.

"An understandable desire." She spoke in a somber tone, and though she knew she shouldn't, she couldn't stop herself from adding bitterly, "Your father had always been your favourite, has he not?"

"That's…" Chara stumbled, visibly shocked, and it broke her heart to know that she was the one who made them do it. "You make it sound as though I somehow love you less."

She didn't reply and simply looked away, refusing to meet gaze.

"Mother, you know I love you dearly." Their voice was soft, kind, and it only succeeded in adding on to her guilt. "But at the same time I am also father's child and I love him dearly too. And you know for a fact that he loves me just as much. If you wish, we may keep my return from the other monsters, but not him. It will be unfair."

Toriel tensed her jaw, and felt her heart punch at her chest with sudden rage that swallowed up her shame and unlocked her lips once more. " _Unfair_?" She almost laughed out loud at the thought. "Do not speak of fairness with that man _._ Six humans, my child. Six humans died because of him. Six _children_ were taken in the name of what that man calls 'justice'. Do you understand that? Do you understand what that man has done?"

"Mother…" Chara spoke in a pleading tone, but she wasn't having any of it.

"No. You don't. You don't know what it was like." Memories of the six, long buried in the past, came back to her and she suddenly choked, her throat tight with a suppressed sob, her lower lips trembling as her eyes became misty. "They were so young Chara. So little, and so scared. All they wanted to do was to go home, like you. And your _father…_ That _pathetic whelp_ of a man...He just murdered them all. Didn't they deserve a chance? Where was the fairness in that?"

Chara's shoulders sagged, no longer meeting eyes with her. They probably couldn't. How ugly she must seem now, seething in her anger. She needed to stop this. She was scaring her children. She closed her eyes, and took in a deep, calming breath.

"He took those children's lives, my sweet." She began softly. "He took them away from their parents. And if you leave now he will do the same for the little one here, and to you as well."

Chara's eyes widened. "Father wouldn't hurt me."

"No, not directly. But the people will, under _his_ order." Toriel laughed. "That sick coward doesn't even have the gut to do the job himself. What right does a man like that have to have his own child back? He doesn't deserve you, my sweet. You don't deserve to have a man like that for a father."

Chara fidgeted in place, no doubt shocked at the level of pure spite she held in her words at the mention of their father. Sixty years ago, she and Asgore used to be so much in love, and now they were separated in what her child perceived as overnight. How traumatising it must be for them. _Yet another child who is hurt by his rash decisions. Curse you Asgore. If we ever meet again I will repay this debt a hundredfold, do you hear me?_

She continued to seethe, her rage growing at the thought of her husband more and more. But suddenly, Chara was talking, and their soft spoken words cut through her emotions like butter against a hot blade.

"It's... not about deserving, mother. I am not something to be given or taken. I have my own free will."

She nearly gasped. The words cut deep, through her sorrow and her hatred.

Her child spoke true, she knew, but she didn't want to listen. She couldn't afford to. She nibbled on her lips, biting them so hard that she could have drawn blood. If she hadn't remembered to smile before her children, she probably would have lost it right there and then. She had to smile. She had to smile for the good of her children.

"I think, perhaps, that it is time for us to have our morning tea." She announced cheerily, her voice just over a whisper and dangerously fragile. "I was thinking of making some crumpets. I will have chocolate spread over for you, my sweet. Would that not be nice?"

"Mother..." Chara's word was one of shock, and she evaded it by turning her attention to Frisk.

"And for you, little one? What would you like to have on yours? I have salted butter of course. If you like it sweeter, I can put chocolate spread over yours as well, or some strawberry jam."

"Mother!"

"Yes?" Toriel turned casually and met eyes with the deep, sorrowful eyes that pierced her like a spear. She was quick to look away, focusing on the younger human once more. It turned out to be a mistake, however, because the moment she shifted her gaze, Frisk looked up at her with the saddest pout she'd seen since her own son.

_A pincer attack._ She giggled shakily. _Now_ this _is truly unfair._

"You cannot keep us here forever." Chara growled at her, their voice filled with such determination.

"Maybe." She smiled to herself. "But I will be damned if I do not try my best to keep it that way as long as I can."

Chara gaped at her response. "Then what of this child? Will you keep them prisoner here too? Will you keep them from finding their way back home?"

"Oh Chara, this is no prison." She laughed as though they were being ridiculous. Which they were. So very ridiculous. "This _is_ Frisk's home now. I will take care of both of you. You two will be like siblings. Is that not exciting?"

Chara shook their head in distress. "Mother, _listen_ to yourself. This is _not_ Frisk's home. The choice should be theirs to make."

"Then we shall ask them now!" She turned to the little human. "Child, do you not wish this to be your home? I have seen how happy you are here, how great you are with the monsters of the Ruins. I would be happy to have you as my child, and I promise I will be the best mother you will ever have."

Toriel sent the child a kind smile, but it was returned with a sad, almost teary frown. Frisk ducked their head and almost reluctantly shook it.

Her smile slowly vanished, and she sat there, staring at her children.

Her two, _unhappy_ children.

She quickly stood out of her chair, making the humans back off in fright. "I… I think this conversation is over. I will be in the kitchen if you need me."

She turned away and shuffled briskly towards the kitchen but was brought to a stop when her child rounded before her and blocked her path.

"You cannot run from this." Chara strained and the desperate expression they gave her stabbed at her insides sharper than any blade ever could.

"Step aside, my sweet. This conversation is over."

"Please, _please_ , you _must_ be reasonable."

" _Reasonable_?" She nearly laughed. "Am I not being reasonable? Is it not _reasonable_ that I want my child safe? Is it not _reasonable_ that I wish my child not to go through such dangerous trials if I can help it?"

"A child is one only for so long. They must grow up and learn to fend for themselves."

"Oh my dearest Chara, you know so little. A child will always remain one in their mother's eyes."

"You are not thinking straight-"

"That is enough, my sweet."

"Please, mother listen to what I'm-"

"I said _ENOUGH!_ "

The outburst was like a grenade explosion at dawn at an unsuspecting family home: sudden, unexpected and unprepared.

Toriel breathed heavily once, then twice, then blinked as she realised what she had done. She looked down and saw her Chara, their eyes wide with shock and horror. If she didn't know any better, she would say that they almost looked frightened. Of her.

She slapped a palm over her mouth to suppress the impending sob. She closed her eyes, brushing the sight away into the darkness.

"I have only just gotten you back. I will not risk losing you again. Never again." She placed a gentle but firm hand over her child and forcibly ushered them aside. "I have made myself clear. Now be a good child and go to your room. I will call when tea is ready."

With that, she headed into the kitchen, leaving the children to deal with the tense atmosphere alone. It was only a few second after that she heard Chara slam their room's door shut, and though normally she would have never tolerated such behaviour from them, she decided to let them go this time around. She had better things to do, after all.

"Make crumpets… Yes. That's what I need to do. Chara loves crumpets. It'll calm them down. Then we'll forget this ever happened."

She marched to the fridge like a woman possessed, and immediately busied herself with her work, ignoring the beads of tears that slid down her furs.

* * *

"Well _that_ went swimmingly, no?"

Frisk watched Chara pace the room in silence, watching them nibble at their thumbnail while walking endlessly in circles like a wind up toy. Was this a habit of theirs, the child wondered, not remembering a single instant in the past where they'd seen Chara do this. It was a new part of their partner that they were learning and that fact alone filled them with unbridled glee, but it was immediately squashed by the tense air around them. They pouted sadly, fiddling their thumb as they waited on Chara to finish… whatever it was that they were doing. They hoped that it would be over soon. They hated to see their partner like this.

"Ugh, I can't believe… Did you _hear_ her? She sounded borderline insane!"

"She wasn't _that_ bad." Frisk defended their foster mother instinctively, but shrunk back when Chara whipped towards them incredulously.

"Is that what you _really_ think?"

It wasn't, and all they could do was pout sadly in response.

Chara huffed and resumed pacing the room, nibbling at their thumbnail once more.

Frisk wanted to tell them that they were going to hurt their teeth but decided against it. Jittery nerves were booming out of the monarch like the air from a fog machine. They knew Chara was already going through a lot right then: they're death of the past sixty years, the death of their brother, their parents' separation. The last thing Chara needed, they were sure, was a little bubbly kid telling them the harms of biting one's nail.

"Are you okay?" Frisk asked and immediately wished they could slap themselves for it, knowing that it was a dumb question.

Chara turned to them, eyes wide and agleam. They winced back, fully expecting Chara to scream at them, but all the monarch did was stare, hard and unmoving. It was as though they had turned into a life sized statue.

"Ch-Chara?" Frisk called and it earned them a confused blink.

"What? Oh. Yes. I'm fine. Of course I am."

_That doesn't sound fine._ They thought.

"Well, I am. Far better than mother anyway." The monarch paced again, their nail biting reaching a new height. "Did you see the way she stared when we first told her?" They asked, their eyes dangerously wide. "Why, I half feared her eyes would pop out they were so wide. Wouldn't that have been funny? POP!" They yelled, then barked a short, unstable laugh that splashed over Frisk like a bucket of icy water. "I swear, I've never seen someone so shocked. She's usually so composed, you know? Seeing her act like this is like seeing the sun rise from the west. Maybe monkeys will grow wings next, yes? And pigs wear top hats and dance under the pale moonlight?" They giggled again, and Frisk shivered. To them it was starting to appear as though Chara was losing their mind as well.

The child peered at them sadly, sending a wave of the said emotion which washed over the monarch and sobered them right up. Chara blinked, then duck their head to the floor, mortified at their own behaviour.

"Ehem." They cleared their throat, dropping their hand and the well chewed thumbnail to the side as they tried to save as much dignity as they could. "M-My apologies. That was not... I just…"

Frisk raised a calming hand. "It's okay. I understand."

"Do you?" Chara asked sharply. They began pacing again. "Shit. Shit shit _shit_! What the hell are we supposed to do now? She's not going to let us go. And I really don't think badgering her again now would be the smartest of ideas. We're stuck. We're stuck and it's… it's _stupid_ that's what it is."

Frisk twisted their lips in thought, leaving the monarch to seethe. In a situation like this, the solution was usually quite obvious to them: close their eyes, think of the past and they were back, free to retry the encounter and see if things could work out better for everybody. But right now, the story was a touch different.

"Chara...?" They called.

The monarch whipped their head towards them, eyes flashing wide. " _What?_ "

Frisk held gaze with the cold, red eyes for two whole seconds before shaking their head with a smile. "N.. nothing."

Chara didn't even sneer at them for wasting time, just turned back and hung their head in thought.

Frisk quietly sighed in relief, and complemented themselves for being smart enough not to ask Chara if they wanted to go back in time. After so many iteration, Frisk had long learned how to mimic their behaviour of the past, making each timeline as authentic as possible. Knowing that they were helping others made them try hard and they weren't the type to be angry at others so it was relatively easy for them to master the skill. Chara on the other hand, was a completely different story. They've never been through a time travel where they had to go through the same conversation again and unlike Frisk, they were easy to rouse and anger, and have proven to be quite stubborn about those feelings as well. The way they were now, they were in no shape to go back and try that conversation again. If they did they'll probably end up shouting from the start, _"Oh mother dearest, I've never seen such stubbornness out of anyone. It simply does not suit people of our status and refinement. You simply MUST correct your behaviour, or else I shall be forced to give you the hardest flick of my nose I've given anyone in my life. Hmph!"_

"What are you doing?"

Frisk blinked, and looked to find Chara glaring at them with a less than happy expression. "Uhh…. nothing?"

"Were you having a laugh out of me in your mind?"

"No?" It was a blatant lie and they both knew it. "Sorry. My mind sort of trailed off."

"If you have the time to entertain yourself, how about you help me think of a way to get mother to see reason?" Chara hissed at them with an increasingly annoyed tone.

With a sheepish nod, Frisk apologised and got to the request immediately. They've already dismissed the idea of reloading their SAVE. So they had to think of something else.

_What would a normal person do in a situation like this?_ They wondered. _If they've gotten into an argument and want the other to forget that they've had a fight without going back in time, they would…_

Frisk frowned at the simple but effective solution that came to them. They had a distinct feeling that Chara wasn't going to be much appreciative of it.

"I think…" They began and caught Chara's attention, knowing that they had to at least try. "I think... we should wait."

As expected, Chara was not amused. "Okay, you know what? Return back to your musings, dear. I will ponder on this myself."

"Wait, no, I'm serious!"

"What, you want us to _wait_?" The monarch scoffed. "You mean us to do _nothing_?"

Frisk raised a pair of calming hands. "Sort of. What I'm saying is, I think we should give Ms Toriel some time to cool down a bit. Who knows? Maybe she'll rethink her words later. She's really smart right? She'll realise that what she's doing is not right. And to be honest, I think you could use a bit of rest too. Your feelings right now, they're a bit..." They grasped at their chest, just over their heart. " _Jumpy_."

Chara snorted but didn't argue back. They probably agreed with their jittery state, albeit begrudgingly. "We cannot wait forever you know." They growled.

"And we won't. We'll give her until lunch or something."

"And then what?" They laughed bitterly. "Shall we try talking to her again? Because that went so great the first time around, no? Lord save me, she's such a stubborn mule sometimes. There's no talking to her when she's like this. We might as well be banging our heads against a brick wall." Chara barked another laugh, but it was less bitter this time and more shaky. It sounded... sad. "Damn her. Damn that silly woman!"

"Chara-"

"No!" They roared, but didn't continued. They just stared at Frisk with wide angry eyes almost daring them to speak. But Frisk saw through it, saw through them, and they knew it too. Like a candlelight being blown away, the anger vanished, and in it's place was a sad, frightened child who just couldn't cope with what was happening to them. Their lips began to tremble and their throat bobbed. "I just…" They began in a hoarse tone, but couldn't continue. They turned away, hiding their face from the world. "I just don't want mother to be like this. She was so happy before. She's usually so strong, so wise..."

They trailed off, tiny sniffles taking over, and Frisk's heart ached for them.

The child approached the monarch and placed their hand over their pale arm. They didn't caress it or anything like that. They were sure Chara wouldn't appreciate such intimate gesture from them just yet, but they kept their hand there, letting the monarch know that they were here with them, that they were here to support and help, only if they were wanted.

Chara's entire body froze at the contact, but the tension soon left. They didn't lean into the touch but didn't brush the hand off either. They just let the child be, their eyes slowly filling with tears.

"Oh, Chara…" Frisk squeezed supportively, their eyes watering as they shared the helplessness that Chara felt.

The monarch remained still for another moment before stepping away, away from Frisk's touch. "Enough." They sniffled. "You made your point. I'm in no shape to confront mother again right now. I'm sure even if we go back in time, I won't be able to say the right words to her. We'll just end up coming back here again. Possibly worse."

Frisk nodded and mumbled a small thanks, knowing that it took a lot for Chara to admit that. "It's going to be okay." They assured.

"You can't possibly know that."

They smiled. "Actually, I do."

"Oh really?" Chara snorted, quickly wiping the tears from their eyes. "Alright, how is that, then?"

"Because we're together." Frisk spoke in a tone as sincere as they could get. "You and me, when we put our minds to it, there's nothing we can't do. I say we're going to free the monsters, and we're going to do it. I say it's going to be okay, and that's why I know it will be."

Chara stared at them, not knowing whether to scowl or laugh. "That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard in my life."

"And it's true." The child insisted.

"No, you fool. You can't..." Chara shook their head. "Where do you even get these nonsense from? Do they teach you to be cloudwalkers nowadays?"

"Don't know what that means but I'm guessing it means something bad."

"It means you're of an empty mind. Always daydreaming with your head in the clouds." Chara flicked Frisk's forehead in emphasis and the child placed both of their hands on their forehead for protection.

"I guess that makes sense." They grumbled. "But hey, anime teaches me lots of good things about the world, and that was just one of them."

"And what, may I ask, is an 'anime'? And why is it teaching youth these ridiculous ideas?" Chara frowned, and Frisk almost collapsed in shock.

"You... don't know what anime is?" They couldn't hide their disbelief. What kid didn't know anime these days,they thought, then they quickly remembered that Chara wasn't a kid from 'these days' at all. They were more like the grandmas and grandpas of the present day.

"No. Should I?" Chara quirked.

"It's… Japanese cartoon." Frisk tried to explain in the simplest form possible.

"Japanese? Why would I know anything from Japan?"

Frisk didn't even know what to say to that. "What else don't you know? Do you know what a TV is?"

"Of course I do." Chara said, sounding almost offended.

"What about cars?"

"Cars came before TV, darling."

"Cellphones?"

"What's that?"

Frisk gaped, speechless. They stumbled, then fell back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling in a daze. "I have so many things to show you."

"Well, I'm afraid you won't be showing me anything if we stay stuck here."

"Chara." Frisk warned.

"I know." Chara rolled their eyes. "And don't take that tone with me, child. We will give mother time. She is a smart woman, as you've said. She will come to her senses soon enough, I'm sure."

Frisk smiled, glad that Chara was feeling calmer, better. "What shall we do now then, while we wait?"

Chara tilted their head in thought, then turned to the child with a curious gaze. "Why don't you tell me about this 'cellphone', thing? I have much to learn of this world, after all. I might as well start with that."

Frisk jumped up, and grinned wide. "Gladly."

* * *

Tea was tense. Beyond tense.

Toriel and the children spent the break sitting in silence, each doing their best to drink their tea to the bottom without seeming too hasty to leave. The lunch following hadn't been much better either. The trio ate their individual snail casserole in muted silence with only the clinks of utensils filling the uncomfortable gaps.

On numerous occasions Toriel felt the need to start a conversation but could never built up the courage to do so. In the end, she only got to speak to Frisk who had merely come to ask her for a cellphone. How the child knew she had one was anyone's guess, but she'd provided them with one regardless, feeling that it was the least she could do after her display. The child thanked her before giving her a sad smile and scurrying away to follow Chara into their room.

Toriel set down the now clean dish and sighed, slapping the drenched dry cloth on the hanger a bit harder than necessary.

Silence blanketed over the motionless kitchen, leaving her to her thoughts uninterrupted. She had done her best to ignore them for the past two hours, but now there was no more to do, her mind was yet again free to be dominated by what had happened before in the living room, by her regretful words as well as actions.

She knew that she would hate herself for saying those things to her child, knew it from the moment the words left her mouth, but even still nothing could have prepared her for the sheer amount self loathing and disgusted she felt. Even now, she felt an overwhelming urge to take a long, scalding bath. She wanted to claw at her skin if only to distract herself from these crawling sensation that ran all over her body, like she was covered in thousands of tiny insects clicking their pin like legs over every one of her furs.

_I am doing this for my children._ She told herself just as she had done time and time again that morning. _I am doing this for their safety. I am doing this for their happiness. I am doing the right thing. I am. I AM._

Yet no matter how much she repeated the mantra, her hands gripping at the counter top's edge, her teeth biting into her lips till the upper skin broke, it didn't make her feel any better about it all. Not even a little.

It was funny, really. She had lived for nearly a millennia now, centuries upon centuries of life experience and knowledge had accumulated inside her. Yet in the end she was still ruled by her emotions, rash actions and decisions. She was still the same scared old woman, dreaming of becoming a mother and a teacher. What had she been doing all these years? Where was all the wisdom that she was supposed to have gained from her age? For the first time in a very long time, she felt silly, foolish, and useless.

Wiping the tears away, she checked the clock on the wall. One thirty. Way too early to be cooking dinner. Perhaps it was time for some spring cleaning?

She moved to the sink, and was about to pull the duster from the cupboard underneath when a loud ring of her phone made her jump. Closing the cupboard, she quickly reached down to her robe and pulled out the blaring device. It was odd hearing the ringtone again. She didn't think she'd received a phone call from anyone in decades.

She checked the cover for the caller.

_Spare phone #1._

She frowned, confused, but pressed on the receive button nonetheless.

"Hello?" She spoke tentatively, if not slightly fearful.

" _Oh my goodness! It works! It actually works!"_ Chara's excited voice exclaimed in delight.

Toriel blinked, checked the caller id again and placed the phone back to her ear. "Hello?"

" _I told you it does."_ Frisk's smaller voice came from further away. _"I still can't believe you didn't have cellphones back then. How did you contact anyone? What if you got stuck in traffic and had to tell Ms Toriel you were going to be late?"_ There was a pause. _"Wait, did you just call someone?"_

_"Well of course I did, dear. How else am I going to check if you weren't talking utter baloney? I mean, a mobile telephone that one carries in their pocket? That's science fiction! Oh, how rude of me: Hello, operator? Terribly sorry about that. I would like to speak to the royal receptionist if you can, please."_

Toriel blinked again. "Chara?"

A long bout of silence ensued from the other end.

Suddenly, there was a rushed whisper from her child which sounded liked _"Oh my lord! How do I end the call?!",_ followed by Frisk's little voice saying " _This button here_." Then the call was cut and the phone's speaker blared with the hang up tone.

Toriel blinked and pulled the device away from her ear once more.

Her first thought was to call her child back and ask them what that was about before realising that she could just walk over to their room to speak to them directly. She was in the middle of deciding whether or not she wished to face her child in person when her phone rang again.

Once more, the caller id read _Spare phone #1._

"Hello?" She received again.

" _Ehem, hello operator. I would like to speak to the royal receptionist if you'd please."_

She frowned. "Chara, it is your mother again."

Another bout of silence reigned.

" _O-oh…"_ Chara finally stuttered. _"Hello mother."_

Toriel winced at their awkward tone. "Hello, my sweet." She couldn't decide if she wanted them hang up again or not.

" _I... suppose you haven't become the local telephone operator recently?"_ They asked tentatively.

"No. I'm afraid telephone operators no longer exist."

" _Oh."_ They sounded shocked, if not a bit mortified. _"But I pressed the zero button and it called you."_

"That is because your cellphone has my number on what is called a speed dial."

" _I... see."_ The phone rustle a bit, and she heard her child speak away from the receiver, _"What on earth is a 'speed dial'?"_

She was beaten to the answer by Frisk's voice over the line. _"It's a feature where you store the phone number of the people you love."_

_Not... exactly accurate._ Toriel thought, but was endeared by the child's honest view of the feature nonetheless. "Is Frisk introducing you to the cellphone?"

" _Umm… yes, they are. They've mentioned it, but I honestly didn't believe them. I suppose I stand corrected, however. It's... a fascinating device."_

Toriel hummed. _So that's why they asked for it._ "I can only imagine. It is much smaller than the ones we used to have, are they not?"

" _Small?"_ Chara chuckled. _"This device is positively miniscule. It doesn't have cords. And it has push buttons! Have you ever imagined such a thing?"_

Her lips spread into a thin smile despite herself. "I understand how you feel. I was amazed at the advancement in technology when I first gotten hands on it myself."

" _Indeed. And the child tells me that we can play games with these device, which I find hard to understand."_ Chara's voice became further away as they spoke to Frisk. _"What are we supposed to do? Surely we cannot play catch with it. This thing must cost a fortune."_

" _No, silly."_ Frisk giggled. _"We play small video games with it."_

" _And what, pray-tell, is a 'video game'?"_

The child's shocked gasp was audible both through the receiver as well as from down the hallway.

Chara must have nearly dropped the phone because the speaker rattled with the fumbling of hands. _"Goodness."_ They huffed into the receiver. _"I think I may have said something I shouldn't have."_

" _Y… you don't know what a video game is..."_

Toriel stifled a giggle at Frisk who sounded as though they were about to faint. "Is the child alright?"

" _I think they're having a stroke."_ Chara spoke as though they were commenting on the weather.

"I am sure they are not."

" _Oh you'll think differently if you can see their face right now."_

She giggled again. "Well, I shall leave you to help them out then. Call out if you need anything. Perhaps you can use the cellphone to do so?"

" _Perhaps."_ Chara answered wryly. _"I'm afraid my mastery of it is not complete just yet."_

"I am sure you will catch on quickly. You are a smart child, after all."

There was a small puff of air that told her that Chara had laughed and was smiling. She smiled too, but the silence soon continued on after, moving into the uncomfortable territory. After what seemed like hours, her child spoke up again. _"I… I suppose I should hang up."_

Toriel's smile sobering a touch, reality popping the small bubble of happiness that had formed during the short phone call. "Yes, if you would like to." She replied _._

The two hung on the line waiting for the other to speak or hang up.

Chara broke the silence again by clearing their throat. _"Well then. I... will see you soon."_

"Of course."

" _You always carry your phone around then?"_

"Indeed. I will not miss the call. You need not worry."

Another pause. Long uncomfortable pause.

Her child sighed heavily, as though they had been placed a world upon their shoulder. _"Mother?"_

"Yes?" Toriel answered, her grip on her phone tightening.

" _I… I know... that I've said this many times before, but I want you to know that… I love you. You know I always will. No matter what happens in the future."_

Toriel bit her lower lips, feeling a wave of tears coming on at the proclamation. "I love you too, my sweet." She answered in a hoarse whisper. "And so it shall be, forevermore. Nothing will change that."

" _Yes, well then…"_ They coughed, no doubt embarrassed by such 'sappy' mood as they would call it. _"I will see you soon."_

"See you soon."

The hang up tone slammed down on the speaker.

Toriel hung on to the call for a moment longer, as though if she waited long enough the connection would come back to life and she would speak to her again. It was a foolish notion of course, and she soon clicked the phone shut, ending the call and leaving her to stand in the silent kitchen, alone once more.

She looked down at the small device in her hands, replaying the conversation in her mind, and smiled. Her child's first introduction to modern technology. It was so endearing just to hear how excited they were for it. Chara always loved to learn new things, she remembered. She couldn't imagine how her child would react once they see all the things the years have brought to the world, not just new technology, but new ways of life, new kinds of people, beliefs and even words. There were so many things for them to learn, they were going to need so many people helping them out.

Toriel stopped, her heart jumping. The thought repeated themselves over and over, a broken record only heard in her mind: Her child needed to see so many things, do so many stuff, meet so many people. They had so much to learn… And they couldn't do that here _._

She placed her hand over the countertop, dropped her head in despair as tears pooled at her scrunched shut eyes.

_But can I allow them to leave? Will they survive the trip home? Do I have the courage to let them take that chance?_

The questions bounced endlessly in her head. Echoing, reverbing, crashing, like ocean waves on a rocky cliffside.

She let out a shaky breath and looked up, her eyes suddenly filled with purpose. A decision was made.

She turned, and without a single look back, headed out: out of the kitchen, out of the living room, and straight down into the basement.

Her hands were beginning to crackle with magic.

* * *

As it turned out, the cellphone was much too old to carry any of the 'video game' Frisk was talking about. They seemed oddly angered by it, though Chara couldn't imagine why. If these 'video games' were just games that were on a television screen, they couldn't imagine it being too exciting. Wouldn't it be better to play chess or tic tac toe in real life than do it on a grainy, colourless screen?

"You don't _have_ to show me this 'video game' of yours, child. The device itself is fascinating enough." Chara said, trying to subtly inform the child that they wanted to play with the device themselves.

"No! You _have_ to see it! You _have_ to!" Frisk insisted, pushing the phone's buttons aimlessly. "I never realised how old this thing really is. I knew it doesn't have texting, but games too? Seriously?"

"It's plenty new to me. Can you _please_ just let me see it some more?" They tried to be more direct.

"No."

"That was not a request."

"No!"

"Grr, I said gimme that, you little brat!"

"Noo!"

Chara leapt at the child and Frisk ran, going around the room in circles, playing a sudden game and cat and mouse.

After two rotation, Chara leapt diagonally and caught the child around their waist.

"Gotcha!" They yelled as they brought the struggling child to the ground. "Now, gimme that device before I s-"

The world turned black, then became normal again.

Chara blinked, confused.

They were still in their room, but the child was no longer in their grasp and rolling on the floor. Instead, they were standing two arm's length away from the monarch, the cellphone still in their hand.

Chara charged again, then in a blink of an eye, they were back in the same place, standing normally.

They frowned at the child, then just as they took a step forward, they returned to the same place.

"What the-?" They began, turning to Frisk incredulously. "Did you just use your power to get away from me?"

Frisk's cheek reddened. A small cheeky smile was playing on their lips.

"Oh you selfish little-!"

They charged. Time rewound.

They charged again. Time rewound.

"Ugh! I will have you whipped for this!" They yelled. Time rewound.

With a loud, frustrated growl, they turned to their bed and grabbed their pillow and one of the small plush dolls sitting around it. They threw the plush to the side towards the room's door, making Frisk followed the doll's trajectory with a confused frown. Then, when the child turned back Chara slammed their face full of fluffy pillow.

"Ack!" Frisk yelped then burst into giggles as Chara's arms wound around them and tripped them over.

"Gotcha, you little crap! Give me that phone!"

"Noo!" Frisk giggled again even as they struggled to be free. They could have rewound again at that point, but they didn't really care about who had the phone then. They were having fun, and deep down, they knew Chara was having fun too. No way they were going to undo that, even if both of them would have remembered it happening.

A loud boom in the distance stopped the children in place, Chara clawing on top of Frisk who was using their feet to kick them off while trying to creep away with the phone in grasp. The boom was quickly followed by an earth shaking tremor that shook the entire room like a rattle. The light above swung wildly as pictures fell off the shelves. Frisk was quick to hug Chara in fright, and for once the monarch allowed it to be.

The tremors soon stopped, and all was quiet once more.

"What the hell was that?" Chara gasped, gently pushing the child away.

"I… I think it came from downstairs."

The answer came to them in an instant. "Mother."

They jumped to a stand and ran out the door in a flash, Frisk scrambling to catch up.

The pair ran down the stairs, jumping off the last four steps in their haste and continued down the long corridor. When they finally reached the last turn, they came face to face with the sight of their mother's back, the magic in her hands burning furiously as she charged her next attack at the Exit. The purple gate was covered in black soot with hairline cracks spreading out over to the adjacent walls. The explosion and tremor had been from her previous attack, that much was obvious, but thankfully it hadn't destroyed the gate completely. They still had some time.

"Mother!" Chara yelled as they stepped forward.

Toriel whipped her head back, angry to see her child down there with her, but not surprised. "Go to your room, my sweet. This place is dangerous for little ones such as yourself."

"Mother, stop this at once! That's the only way for us to leave the Ruins. If you destroy it you will condemn us all to an eternity here!"

Toriel barked a laugh, short and crude. "Why do you think I am doing this in the first place?" The fire in her hand burst out and doubled in size. "Stand back. I will be done here very soon."

Chara shook their head. "You... you cannot do this. This is not a choice you can make for us all!"

Toriel's eyes when she looked back was cold enough to freeze the blood in their veins. "You are a good child, are you not? Go. Upstairs."

Frisk's hand grasped at theirs fearfully, and Chara squeezed back pushing their fears into the hold as well. "No."

"You _will_ listen to your mother."

"Then you _must_ listen to reason first!"

"No!" Toriel's magic flared with her word. "I _HAVE_ listened to reason! Six times. And do you know what that has resulted in? Deaths. Nothing but deaths for the little ones I loved. I refuse to make the same mistake again. I will do this while my mind is still addled, while my conscious is clouded and my judgement impaired! I will regret this in the future but at least with this you will live! You will be safe! I will protect you all!"

She raised her arms in the air and threw the magic with all her might. The flames struck the door, creating a loud explosion that created a shockwave so powerful it nearly lifted Chara up in the air. It certainly would have blown Frisk away had the two not held on to each other. The tremors quickly followed just as before and clouds of dust and smoke filled up the chamber like a fog.

When the quaking ceased and the dust settled, Toriel was still standing unfazed, facing the gate that appeared just about ready to collapse. Her hands lit up once more, preparing her one final attack.

_We have to stop her!_ Chara yelled to Frisk who was shaking like a frightened pup, covered in grey dust.

_H-How?_

_You are the one with the knowledge of the future! What did you do last time? How did you stop her?_

_I don't know! She never came this far with me. I've never been in this situation!_

Chara growled but couldn't push, feeling the child and knowing that they wouldn't do much good pressuring them while they were scared like this. It didn't help with the fact that they were in trouble however. They had to think of something to stop their mother from completely obliterating their chance to leave the Underground, but what could they do? She was already halfway done charging. One more hit like that and the door would surely be destroyed. They needed more time to think, more time to...

_Oh, wait._

They turned to the child. _Rewind! Now!_

Frisk blinked, taking a moment to realise what was being said before jumping into action. They slammed their eyes shut, concentrating hard.

The world was consumed in black.

* * *

The darkness receded and Chara blinked at the new position they were in. They standing in their room with the child standing not two arms length away from them. They were holding the cellphone in their hands.

The two children shared a look, and Chara was the one to say what they were both thinking at that moment. "Crap."

They turned and immediately made for the door, and the moment they were out, the entire house shook with tremors.

"Crap!" Chara yelled again as they steadied themselves on the floor with the child holding on to them. "Can't you go back further than this?!"

Frisk looked up at them sadly. "I'm so sorry. Only one SAVE at a time! That's the rule!"

"Oh, and you just _had_ to SAVE over…!" Chara growled, but decided that there were no time to lose and dragged themselves and the child up to a stand. They ran down the stairs to find their mother standing before the Exit, her hands burning in white. It was exactly the same situation as before.

They half thought to yell for her again, just as they did last time, but then realised that they had an option to play things out differently. They ran, straight past her, ignoring her shocked gasp and placed themselves between her and the door.

"Mother." They began sternly. "You must stop this."

Toriel blinked at her child's sudden appearance, then blinked again when Frisk ran past her as well and stood before Chara, facing her while spreading their arms and legs wide, using their body as a shield. A shield from _her._ As if they feared she would harm her own child. _What a foolish notion_. She thought bitterly. _Can they not see that I am doing this to protect them?_

"Step away, my children. This place will collapse soon and I do not wish for either of you to get hurt."

Chara stepped next to Frisk, pushing one of their arms down. "We will not. If you destroy this gate, you will not only isolate us, but every single monster in the Ruins. You will be condemning them all to an eternity of imprisonment!"

"We are already condemned to an eternity in this land, what is one more barrier? It will be a small sacrifice."

"A 'small sacrifice'?" Chara was appalled. "How can you say that? You are their Queen!"

"And _you_ are my child. I am a mother before I am a queen. I will lay down the entire kingdom if it meant saving your life."

"This is madness."

Toriel clenched her fists and glared with burning ire. "That is enough. Be a good child and go upstairs."

Chara took an involuntary step back, a primal response all animals had in the face of something far greater than themselves. They've never seen their mother so fierce before, so stern.

A hand clasped over their shoulder, and they turned to find Frisk next to them, giving them an encouraging look.

_Don't back down._ The child said. _We have to leave the Ruins. We have to save the monsters._

_She is not going to let us go. I don't know how this will turn out if we continue to push._

_Don't worry_. Frisk beamed. _I'll be with you the whole way. I'm supposed to protect you, right?_

"Well?"

Chara looked to their mother who stared them down with a stoic gaze, waiting for their response. With a deep inhale, they stood tall, straightening their back. They felt the child's encouragement from within. When they spoke, their words were filled with a burst of determination. "We refuse."

Toriel's brows crinkled, just for a moment, and her eyes suddenly lost a few centigrades, becoming icy and aloof, a stark contrast to their usual warm, inviting light.

"Do you wish to leave that badly?" She whispered, but her flames doubled in size and intensity, appearing as though it had a will of its own, a will to burn and turn everything into white ash. "Very well. If you will not listen to my words, then I shall remove you by force." She turned her body to the side, her knees bending to a half crouch while her burning hands rose to her chest level. "I apologise for what I must do, my sweet. But rest assured, you will not be harmed for long. I will heal you as soon as I have you subdued."

Frisk frowned at the martial artist pose Toriel was taking. They've never seen her take such pose before. Suddenly, there was a light crackle of air, and they looked down to find Chara's hands forming their magic blades. They gasped. _Chara..._

_Worry not, dear._ Chara reassured. _I won't hurt her. I can't. My love for her makes my magic weak._ They took a step forward, placing the child behind them. _Stand back. We are in danger._

There was a whoosh in the air, and suddenly a pair of flames were flying towards them, far faster than any fire Frisk had ever seen Toriel throw.

Chara pushed the child far to the side and immediately swung their blades to cut the flames down from either side. The clumps of burning magic split in two, and they held their arms back up to prepare for-

_Oh crap._

They saw the following palm strike come at them from head on, and only had a single moment to raise their arms back up to block. They took the chance and succeeded in creating a makeshift shield with their blades, but it mattered very little in the end.

The palm met the blades head on, and instead of being cut, the fire surrounding the hand collided with their magic with such force, it flung Chara back, almost off their feet. The monarch only had an instant to be shocked by the unexpected result before they tumbled on the floor and scrambled back on all fours.

They looked up.

Their mother was nowhere to be found.

Frisk's voice came at them like a freight train. _Behind you!_

_Curses!_

They swung their arm around in a backhand and hit nothing but air. Toriel had jumped back, withdrawing her hand that had been an inch away from her child's neck.

She held her hands out to the side and summon a series of flames that flew at Chara in multiple angles. The monarch stood up and began slicing away at them, but there were too many of them to keep track. They repelled five or so before one slipped through their guard and came for their head. They covered their face in anticipation, but the flame disappeared with a puff just before making contact.

And in it's place, Toriel came down on them with a chop to their head.

They rolled to the side, and in the moment they regained their focus on their mother, she grabbed the skirt of her robe and flung it at them, slapping their face full of the purple silk.

"Gah!" They shouted and thrashed about, trying to cut the fabric away. The curtain slipped past them, however, almost dancing around the blades to safety. Chara were about to swing again when they realised their mother had disappeared once more.

There was a sound of air bending behind them.

They immediate they whirled around and-

" _Hurk_!"

Chara stopped, their magic blade shattering away like thin glass. They clutched at the center of their chest, right where they'd been struck by an open palm stab. They stumbled around, and raised their shocked gaze up at their mother who looked down at them with sorrow filled eyes.

"I am sorry for hurting you, my child." She sobbed with tears. "I am so sorry. I am not a good mother."

Her fingers flew at them and jabbed them at the back of the knees, elbow and spine.

Without another word, Chara fell to the ground, their limbs shaking as though in seizure. They lay there helpless as Toriel glided past them to finish her job on the Exit. The last thing they saw before the world became black was the crumbling doorway with their mother's silhouette looming over the burning room.

* * *

"Jesus _Christ!_ " Chara gasped and would have fell to the ground completely had it not been for Frisk scrambling over to help.

"Are you okay?" The child fretted over the monarch as they slowly supported them back up to a stand. "Wh-what happened to you? What did she do?"

"Stupid pressure points!" Chara growled between deep breaths. "She just… She stopped my airflow and paralysed my entire body. How the hell has she maintained her skills living in isolation for so long?" They glared at the child. "Why didn't you warn me of this? I would have been more prepared!"

"I-I didn't know! She never did that to me before."

"She didn't?" Chara turned a disbelieving look. Pressure points had always been their mother's specialty, being one of the more effective way of winning a fight without seriously harming the opponent. 'Soft fighting' she used to call it, but as they were quickly realising, there was nothing 'soft' about it. "What did she do to you when you fought her then?"

"Stand in place?" Frisk shrugged. "She sort of just… threw magic at me. I didn't even know she could move like that!" They exclaimed, still in awe at the frightening speed in which Toriel moved. How she did that for someone her size was beyond them. She was like a kind, pie-making ninja the size of a professional boxer.

"Ugh, of course that's what she did." Chara spat in disgust. "She can't ever bring herself to fight seriously against little kids."

"Hey, you're a little kid too." Frisk huffed indignantly.

Chara rolled their eyes. "I'm not a little kid, _child._ If I'm a little kid, you're a plush doll. You're four foot nothing!"

Frisk didn't appreciate the comment and showed it by scowling and puffing their cheek, which probably didn't help much in their argument but it certainly made them feel better. Before they could say their piece, however, the entire house shook with tremors. The children shared a wide eyed look.

"We must go." Chara said and hastily ran out, leaving Frisk to chase them out.

The two quickly made it downstairs and came to the familiar sight of Toriel's back standing in front of the crumbling door.

_Okay, now I've got you, mother dearest._ Chara hissed and summoned their magic blade.

_What are you doing?!_ Frisk gasped again.

_Do you really think I can defeat her in a straight up fight? I'm using whatever advantage I can get!_

_But you can't just attack her while she has her back turned!_

Chara rolled their eyes. _I've fought dirty before, darling. Watch me._ With that they launched into a full sprint.

_Chara!_ Frisk yelled after them, but it was too late. The monarch had already reached their mother and was catapulting themselves at her legs.

_I'm sorry mother._ They thought as they swung their dull blade at the back of her knees, trying to use it like a baton to knock her to the ground with a mix of force and surprise.

The blade touched Toriel's robe.

And in that instant, the Queen hopped forward, then skipped back, leaping over Chara's blade and landing safely behind it.

Chara didn't have time to be shocked as the instant she landed, her arms shot down on them, catching them in a caring embrace with one arm while jabbing them hard on the neck with the other.

" _Urk_!" Was all Chara said before they slumped into their mother's embrace, unconscious.

Gasping loud, Frisk closed their eyes and reloaded their SAVE.

* * *

Believe it or not, the process repeated itself two more times. Each time Chara claimed that they knew what to do next, but whatever dirty tricks and tactics they came up with, Toriel didn't fall for it, overpowering them and knocked them out without fail. Needless to say, Chara was not a very happy person when they returned.

"Damn that woman, looks more like a stupid cow than a goat, sod it, I'll show her..." They muttered incoherently as they marched for the door and Frisk was quick to stop them by blocking their way.

"W-wait! What are you going to do?"

"I'm gonna _murder_ that woman!" Chara roared as they tried to push past but the child didn't budge.

"No, come on. Let's chill for a bit, okay?"

"I don't know what that means. Now, get out of my way."

"Chara, can we just-?" Frisk paused when a magic blade was held at their throat. They scowled at the glowering monarch, clearly unamused. "Ehem. Can we _please_ just talk about this? We literally have an eternity on our hand with my powers and I think we should use it."

Chara continued to seeth for another minute, annoyed that the child wasn't even fazed by their blade. Finally, they let out a loud huff and turned away to sit on their bed.

The blade on their throat gone, Frisk breathed in relief. "Okay. So... Let's talk."

"What's there to talk about?!" Chara threw their hands up in the air, "What the hell are we going to do? We can't go back further than this point; Mother's so stuck in her delusion that she'd willingly condemn us, herself, and every monster in the Ruins to a lifetime of imprisonment; And I'm no way good enough to defeat her in a one on one battle!"

"Well, we don't wantto hurt her, right?"

Chara sighed. "No. Of course not. She's my mother."

"Then what were you even planning on doing to her?"

Chara shook their head. "I don't know, dear. Immobilise her somehow? I just wanted her to stop. I want her to snap out of her delirium and see how wrong she is!" They sighed tiredly.

"So, you're not strong enough to beat her, but you have no idea how to stop her without hurting her, which you can't, by the way."

Chara didn't much like the way the child put it but nodded begrudgingly.

"Okay, so. What we need here is a plan."

"A _plan_?" Chara scoffed. "Let me guess, you're going to hug her and cry? Or maybe you'll take a note out of your ridiculous monster appeasing methods and _shaking your hips_ at her." The image sent their sarcastic smile into a disgusted frown. "Alright, I'll warn you right now: If you ever do something so foul to mother I'll cut your legs off, right there and then."

"Oh, ha-ha." Frisk scowled, not appreciating the threat. "Better that than charge in blindly and end up falling on the floor. Every time you're all, _'Geeeh, Frisk I'm paralysed! Reset, rewind, or whatever word you use to describe it because I'm a big stubborn mule who doesn't know when to listen!'_ "

"You are _ridiculous_." Chara hissed back, their cheeks turning a rosy pink. "Ugh, fine! We'll think of a plan. Do you have something in mind?"

Frisk smiled and proceeded to elaborate happily. "Well, yes, of course I do. We wouldn't be talking otherwise. From my experience, the only way she ever stopped her attacks are when I got _really_ hurt-"

"Which won't happen because she'll just knock you out instead."

"-OR..." Frisk continued with a warning glare. "Or, when I kept on telling her I won't fight her. It took me twenty times or so, but she did listen in the end."

"And again, it's difficult to speak when you're lying on the floor paralysed." Chara drawled.

"And that's exactly my point!" Frisk snapped their finger. "The key here is not to get hit by her, because once you do, it's immediate game over. You're not _bad_ at dodging magic, but you're not too great either. She's using that to her advantage to sneak her pressure point attacks in. Once the bullets comes in a wide spread pattern, you're pretty much hopeless."

"Why thank you, child. You sure know how to compliment someone." Chara spat. They already knew that they weren't the best at dodging magic bullets. It was the primary reason why they learned the spell to slice them apart in the first place. It helped them counter against larger bullets that were travelling in a single file line, but not against complex barrages like the ones their mother liked to use.

"But now you have me to help!" Frisk clapped excitedly.

"You?" Chara raised a suspicious brow.

"Yeah! I mean did you see? Every reset, she wasn't aiming at me at all. She probably thought I was useless in a fight. But I can help big time! With our connection I can be your second set of eyes. I can help you dodge _and_ stop her without actually hurting her!"

"Can you now?" Chara was still not convinced. They were starting to get how the child would help them dodge, but stopping their mother?

Frisk nodded vigorously. "It's a similar plan you and I used before when you were a ghost. But this time, it'll be even better because unlike a ghost, _I_ can touch things and move them. We'll win for sure!"

Chara kept their brow raised, yet was intrigued by this so called plan the two of them had had enough that they were willing to listen. They patted the place next to them on the bed, a message which Frisk understood in an instant, and ran over to take a seat.

"Elaborate." Chara commanded, and the child was only happy to oblige.

"Okay, so here's what I was thinking..."

* * *

"Do you wish to leave that badly?" Toriel whispered, her flames doubling in size and intensity as all of her resolve and determination to protect her children fed into her magic. "Very well. If you will not listen to my words, then I shall remove you by force. I apologise for what I must do, my sweet, but rest assured, you will not be harmed for long. I will heal you as soon as I have you subdued."

With a single breath, she threw a pair of flames to the side in an arc and launched into a wild dash. Chara push Frisk to safety and focus on repelling the two flames, taking their attention off of her.

Chara was never good at dealing with magic bullets, she remembered, even after months of training with the guards. The child had way too much one on one, close quarter combat in their mind. They could never wrapped their head around how to eye each bullets and differentiate the dangerous ones from the mere decoys.

She threw a palm blow at their chest, and as she predicted, Chara defended themselves with their blade. She pushed back with her magic, using her physical strength to her advantage and pushing them hard enough for them to tumble back. Even as they fell, she followed forth, sticking close then quickly jumping behind them as they regained their balance.

_I'm sorry for this my sweet._ She thought sadly as she reached out to her child, preparing a finger jab to the joint between their spine that will temporarily paralyse their entire body.

It was an unfair fight, she supposed. She was faster than Chara, smarter, more experienced in battle and tactics, and despite being weaker in terms of raw magic due to them being a rare savant, she was bigger and was much stronger physically. In all honesty, Chara never stood a chance in stopping her, and they both knew it.

Which was exactly why it was such a surprise when in that moment, Chara jumped back, avoiding her attack and running their head straight into her gut.

"Oh!" She yelled, then quickly grabbed the magic blade that came at her with her hands.

She stared down at her child in shock, not having expected a counter attack. She didn't think Chara had noticed her presence at all, and on top of that, she didn't think Chara knew how to react to a sneak attack besides wildly swinging at their assailant.

_What in the…?_

She didn't have time to think.

Despite Chara's love for her making their attack weak, the sheer amount of magic within them could cause some bruises if she wasn't careful. Concentrating, she amplified the magic burning around her hands and snapped the blade she was holding in half. Chara jumped back, then growled at their broken blade. It only took them a moment to regrow it, but it was an insult to their ability. Chara lost their cool easily when it came to a fight, and she knew this would make them hasty and rash.

They charged forth again, a lot more wild than before, and she quickly grabbed her robe and threw it at their face.

"Gah!" She heard them yell in frustration, and took the opportunity to jump behind them again. Her child recovered and reacted faster than she'd expected, but not fast enough for her not to follow their movement and keep herself directly behind their line of sight at all time.

She reached out besides their one ear, clapped once, then positioned herself on the other side. Visibly jumping, Chara swung their blade at the side where the noise had came from, putting their back towards her. She lashed out with a jab, this time certain that her pressure point strike will hit.

It didn't.

She had been so certain that her child had no idea where she was, but the moment her fingers were just a hair's breadth away from hitting their mark, Chara jumped forward, away from her attack. She only had a moment to be stunned before her child turned around and came at her with their burning hands.

She stepped to the side to avoid them, and yelped loudly as her legs were suddenly caught and pushed off balance.

She slipped, and fell to the floor with a short, "Eek!"

* * *

Chara winced as their mother hit the floor with a less than graceful thud, the back of her head hitting the ground with a harsh ' _Thunk!'_

They stopped their attack and quickly ran over to her and helped the child who was struggling to get out from under her robe.

_Ouch._ Frisk commented as they stood with Chara's help.

_Indeed._ Chara stared at their mother's groaning form. _I... can't believe that worked._

_Ah-ha! See? I told you. Teamwork is the best!_ Frisk boasted in glee.

_Quite. You're rather good at this sneaking business._

_She just wasn't paying attention to me. Sneaking only works best with a distraction, after all._ Frisk tapped their lips. _Hmm, you know, it's fun being the observer for once. No danger to me and I get to help out my partner at the same time. We should totally do this more often. I'll be the ghost this time around, and you can be the human that breaks the barrier._

Chara ignored the child's musing and approached their struggling mother. _When was the last time she had a fall like that_ , they wondered. She must be in quite a shock.

"Mother, are you alri-"

With a single kick, they jumped back, and narrowly dodged the jab that was aimed for their lungs.

_Chara!_ Frisk yelled worriedly.

_No, get behind the pillars, quickly!_ Chara commanded, then turned to growl at their mother. "That was cheap."

"And I care very little." Toriel muttered as she stood up. "It seems that I may have misjudged the little one's capabilities. Don't you agree?" She looked about the chamber and approached her child with a dark expression. "Where are they hiding?"

Chara took a wary step back. "Mother, please, cease this foolishness."

"If my wish to protect you and the child is 'foolishness'," Her hands began glowing with magic. "Then I'm afraid I must remain a fool for _many_ years to come."

"Mother-"

"No. No talk. I will save you. You will see. I will protect you all. I will keep you _alive_!" With a yell, she threw her magic barrage in an odd snake like waves. It was an attack Chara was very familiar with as the attack that they always failed to dodge whenever they had trained with her. Luckily, this time around, they had a helping hand here to guide them.

_Left!_ Frisk's voice yelled, and they hopped in the said direction, placing themselves in a perfect position where all the flames simply snaked around them as though they were standing in the eye of the storm. _Okay. Hold it. Now… Take a step forward._

They did, and the eye of the storm moved along with them.

_Now step back!_

Once again, the flames moved with them, as though they were a rock in the middle of a stream, parting the water flow. Slowly, they smirked. They knew it wasn't them doing this, but having the flames move around them like this was making them feel invincible, like they were untouchable and could take on just about anything if they'd just put their minds to it.

_Don't get cocky._ Frisk sang, their smugness oozing through their connection.

_Oh shush, just let me have this moment, alright?_

The streams of fire flew by and left Chara staring at an empty chamber, their mother nowhere in sight.

_To your left!_

Chara rolled forward, narrowly dodging the swift neck chop their mother was aiming for.

_Block! She's coming head on!_

The moment they scrambled on their feet, they raised both of their blade as a shield, and clashed heavily with their mother's burning hands. She pushed, gently but surely, and they felt their feet slipping bit by bit as she leaned her face close, her eyes aloof.

"Have I underestimated your skill?" She wondered out loud. She must have noticed that there was something off with their movements. Their mock-battles in the past never went for this long.

"I don't think so." They shook their head, their pride not allowing them to take credit for Frisk's help. "Just lucky today I think. Perhaps the fates want you to stop?"

Toriel smirked. "I've learned over the years that fate can be overrated at times." She gave one powerful shove that sent Chara flying. They rolled to their feet and found a pair of flames coming at them. They sliced them apart and once safe, looked around the empty chamber. Their mother was gone again.

_Not to be worried_ , they thought. The child was on the lookout for them still, they just needed to wait for their instructions.

_Come on, darling. Tell me where she is…_

They waited, both for the child's command and their mother's next attack.

Neither came.

Instead, what they heard was a loud, _physical_ scream from the child echoing about the room.

Their heart did a flip.

"Child?!" They yelled and turned towards where the scream had come from to find the child running towards them with a frightened look marring their small face.

"Chara!" They screamed again. Then in a blink of an eye, Toriel was right there behind them like a ghost.

Chara watched with wide eyes as she reached down and pinched Frisk on the shoulder.

The child's eyes widened in shock, then slackened as they rolled back into their skull.

"Char…" The name died on their lips and they fell right into Toriel's waiting arms, unconscious.

Chara watched the scene with haunted eyes, and felt their heart drop to the bottom of their stomach.

Something cold exploded out from within.

"Hmph." Toriel hummed as she cradled the child in her arms. "I had thought it odd. I remember how far your trainings went, and I know for a fact that you are not capable of following your opponent with such keen eyes. You two were somehow communicating to each other, were you not? This child was giving away my position to you. I may not have underestimated your skill, but I certainly have underestimated your ability to work in a team." She walked around to the pillars and placed the child behind it, making them lean against it. "Now. Now that _that's_ out of the way, it appears that we can continue this uninterrupted. One on one, just as you like it, no?"

She stood to face her child, fully expecting them to be in their battle stance, but oddly enough, she found them standing stock still, their hands slack by their side. They weren't even paying attention to her anymore. Their royal red eyes were wide with horror, fixed onto the unconscious child. They appeared catatonic.

"Chara?" She called out, her dark expression fading in favor of worry. "Chara, my sweet. Are you alright?"

They didn't answer.

They didn't even hear.

Their eyes were glued on the child, the sleeping child who's bright expression were wiped into a blank slate under their unconscious state. From the distance, Chara couldn't see them breathe.

From where they were standing the child appeared dead.

* * *

_They're hurt._

_They're not hurt._

_They're hurt._

_They're not_ hurt _._

_They ARE hurt. She hurt them. She HURT THEM._

_Shit._ Chara stumbled as a skull splitting headache assaulted them and they slapped a palm over their eye. The image of their mother tailing the child, a dark menacing look on her face, and the terror on Frisk's, it was burning them from within. The way the child just slumped over… It was...

_Shit!_ They cursed again. _Fuck! Why should I care?! The kid dies, things just go back. They've been through worse!_

_She hurt the kid. She hurt the kid._ The voices continued, singing the phrase like an old nursery rhyme.

_Stop it… Stop saying that!_

_She hurt the kid. She's gonna hurt the kid again, and then, she'll hurt you._

A wave of cold spread through their body, and they gasped at the chilling shock. _N-no, mother wouldn't do that. She loves us._

_It always happens. It happens despite everyone's intentions. Remember what happened to_ them _._

Faces of little children, looking up to them with such hope, such love, it filled their heart with warmth they never knew. Then, in a flash, the images were replaced. The children weren't smiling anymore, there were no hope. They were frightened, scared, in despair. Then soon, they changed again, and now they were all blank. The faces stared with half open eyes, looking at nothing, feeling nothing. They all blended together into a swirl of thick, oozing red, and disappeared into the void, leaving Chara colder than ever.

_NO!_ They grabbed at their hair, hoping the pain will take the images away. _Mother wouldn't! She can't-!_

_She hurt the kid for love._ _How long before she hurts you?_

_I…_ They made a series of twitchy blinks. _I-I have to talk to her. She'll explain it… She didn't hurt them. She will-_

_Why should you talk to her?_ The voices cut them off.

_She's my mother. She has the right to be hea-_

_Don't talk to her. You don't need to talk to her._

_But-_

_NO._ The cold boomed through their body, crawling out from the inside and filling every inch of their body, right up to the fingertips. _Don't talk to her._

_She's… she's…_

They tried to speak, but the voices… They were so much louder.

_Don't talk to her._ The voices roared. _**She's not worth talking to.**_

* * *

"Chara?" Toriel called for the third time, concern now the only emotion in her voice. Her child was acting strange. They were stumbling about with their hand over their face as though they had a migrane of sort, a severe one at that, which was odd since they'd never been the type who got those in the past. They were acting just fine a minute ago. "Are you sick, my sweet? Is there something-"

There was a burst of magic, a glowing halo of red booming out of her child's body and splashing over everything in its path, along with her. It didn't hurt. No, the magic wasn't formed into any sort of spell and wasn't capable of hurting anything. What it was, however, was dominating, crushing. The halo was a burst of pure magic, so raw and powerful that it could not be contained within the small vessel that was Chara's still growing body. She knew that her child was a savant in terms of magical power, but this was the first time that she felt anything like this from… _anyone_.

"Chara…?"

There was no warning for the attack.

In one moment, Chara was standing in place, head in their hands, and the next, they were flying toward her far faster than she'd ever seen them move, their eyes dangerously wide, oozing with red magic that ran down their face like bloody tears. A pair of magic blades were crackling wildly in their hands. She raised her burning palms to grab them as she'd done before, but the split second her flames touched the blade she saw it, all in slow motion, slice through her magic like butter, and keep going through until it reached her skin, cutting through the flesh and making a papercut worth of wound on her palm.

She gasped and quickly sidestepped the attack, slipping her hand away before it was lofted off.

The next swing came without pause, aimed straight for her chest. She leaned back just far enough to let the blade slide over her, and in the same instant, used the opportunity to jab on the attacking arm's inner elbow. Instantly, the limb drooped lazy.

Her child stopped.

They looked down at their limp arm, turned to her and just… _shrieked._

It was an animal sound, loud, guttural, and full of anger. She staggered back, a frozen chill running down her spine. She never knew that a human was capable of making such noise, much less a child. _Her_ child.

Chara leapt back and held their still functioning arm up in a pose that normally indicated that they were about to shoot a fireball. But what flew at her was a small red ball of magic, slow and perfectly circular. It was a spell she did not remember teaching them before.

_Copycat skill._ She immediately thought. The red hue indicated that the spell was still immature and unstable, meaning it had been copied not long ago. She ran through the list of monsters that lived in the Ruins and quickly guessed that the spell was copied from a Moldsmal, and from the way it moved in a straight line it was most likely-

The ball exploded, scattering into a shower of shrapnels.

She took no time in swiping a wall of white flames before her, creating a barrier that swallowed the little red shards up. And in the next moment, the barrier parted in two and Chara catapulted through the gap, slamming into her in a full body tackle.

The two fell to the floor in a tangled heap, but there was no moment for Toriel to rest. Even as they fell, Chara came at her with their blade, trying to pierce her chest, right through her heart. She grabbed her child by the elbow, locking the limb in place while keeping the deadly blade away from her.

It didn't stop her child from doing their best trying to stab her dead.

"Chara!" She grunted as she steadily pushed back her child who seemed to have doubled their physical strength all of the sudden. "Chara, what has gotten into you?!"

Her child looked up at her, and she gasped at the expression on their face, so full of hate and rage, their red magic dripping out their eyes and mouth like thick tar.

"Hurt… **You** hurt childr **en….!** " Her child heaved like an enraged ox, their magic flinging like hot spit that evaporated upon touch. " **You** are dange **rous! You are a danger to us!** "

The accusation hit her like a train, and she almost lost her grip on her child if she hadn't remembered the deadly consequences of it. "No…" She rasped. "No, I am only doing this to protect you!"

" **Lies!** " Chara screamed, then vanished their blade to direct their open palm at her face.

She immediately kicked the child off, making them roll in the air and misfire their pellet like bullet into the ceiling. The magic struck and shook the room with a heavy tremor, making mountains of dust shower down from above.

Toriel narrowed her eyes to shield away her dirt but didn't lose focus on her child.

A triplet of glowing red dots shuffled amongst the haze like flashlights, giving their position away.

She threw a weak fireball at them, then waited as her child shrieked in surprise then ran straight for her in their continued frenzy. Their malicious intent could be sensed even from the distance, and Toriel briefly wondered how things had gotten to this point.

Chara came within sight through the parting clouds, and she casually threw the skirt of her robe at them.

They shrieked again but immediately cut the offending robe, and it was exactly at this moment that Toriel circled around them, grabbed the edge of the sliced fabric and wrapped it around her child's eyes, blinding them. Then as the monarch began flailing about, she jabbed them in the lower neck.

With a single, choked, "Urk!", the child fell limp on the ground.

The red aura surrounding them dissipated into thin air, their magic blade vanishing along. Steadily, the dirt clouds sank to the floor, revealing the unconscious child in its wake, covered in yellow dust and a piece of ripped robe loosely wrapped around their neck.

Toriel let out a shuddering sigh.

The fight was over.

In haste, she knelt down and rolled Chara over to their back, to examine them for any wounds. There was none. Her child was asleep, their face released from their hate-filled scowl and now just a passive blankness, not a single drop of overflowing magic to be found.

"Chara?" She called, wondering if they'll wake up to their manic state once more, but they didn't. They remained unconscious, peaceful. She sighed again, this time in relief.

Carefully, she lifted them up in her arms, carried them over to where Frisk was lying and placed them next to the smaller human. When a stray hair covered their face, she gently reached out and brushed it away. It was a pleasant sight, two children sleeping side by side, their head rolled towards each other, as though they were seeking each other out in their sleep. It made her want to smile, and made her want to protect them from everything in the world no matter the cost.

Her eyes whisked towards the cracked gate, the one and only escape from the Ruins, from safety and tranquility, and towards the world beyond. Her first attack on it had done quite the number on it. It was only a fireball or two away from complete destruction.

_I can do it_. She thought. _Right now_. _I can destroy the gate and we can finally stay here in this haven as a family. Undisturbed by the darkness outside._

_Together forever._

_Safe._

_Secure._

" _You are dangerous! You are a danger to us!"_

Her child's roaring words came back and stabbed her in the gut with its sharp accusation. She gasped, and sealed their lips shut in order to press down on the sob that came to her.

She looked down on her sleeping child and recalled just how crazed and wild they were scantily a few minutes ago. They were having a breakdown, she realised now, though at the time it seemed to be something a lot more serious.

She'd seen it happen before a few times when Chara had first came to live with them. It was a shocking experience the first time around, and she briefly questioned her decision on letting this human live with them as a family as the episodes often involved them throwing things around and violently lashing out at anyone that came near them; be it the guards, their new parents or even their little brother. Soon, however, she learned that they didn't do it out of spite or the urge to hurt other, but out of fear: Fear that someone or something was out to get them, and that everyone around them was a threat.

It took them months to get through, but by the time near their death, the number of breakdowns Chara experienced had halved. If she didn't count the years that they had been deceased for, Chara hadn't had an episode in two months. It would have been the third if Chara had lived another week and they were all going to have a celebratory feast once they reached it. She remembered she planned it for weeks in advance. She'd been so thrilled and proud of her child back then.

_And now I went and broke that record myself._

"I am a danger to them _._ "She spoke to herself, each word like acid in her mouth. "I am… a danger… to _them_."

It was difficult to admit, but it had to be done. She was not helping them this way. She wasn't protecting anyone by keeping them here. Only herself.

She tried to tell herself that it was for their good, that she was protecting them from death, that any sort of life they would have was better than the things they had to face out there. But it wasn't true. Living here like this, forever stuck in this well called the Ruins, they wouldn't be living, they'd be existing, stuck with nothing to truly do, wasting away day after day.

Chara was correct when they called this place a prison.

She had to be better than this. She wanted to be the best mother in the world for so long. Maybe it was time for her to look back on what that really meant.

"I truly am not a good mother, am I?" She made a sound, and she didn't know if it was a chuckle or a sob.

Whatever it was though, she pressed it down again. There were tears welling up in her eyes, but she quickly brushed them aside. She didn't have time for it.

She knelt down and picked her child up, and began bringing them upstairs one by one.

* * *

Chara opened their eyes groggily and was greeted with the sight of-

"Chara!"

"Aaahh!" They squealed, then slapped a hand over their mouth.

Frisk blinked then slowly grinned in mirth. "Wow, that sounded _really_ girly."

"Oh, shut it you." Chara hissed, their face filling red from the bottom up. They rolled around a bit, studying their surroundings to find out where they were first. They were in their room, that much was obvious, but they didn't know how they had gotten there. They tried to remember but their memories were fuzzy at best. The last thing they remembered was the two of them actually getting an upper hand on their mother and then...

"What happened?" They asked the child whose excitement seemed to double at the question.

"We did it! Well, _you_ did it. But still!"

They didn't understand. "Did what, dear?"

"Convince Ms Toriel to let us go, silly!"

They blinked. "I did?"

"You must have." Frisk shrugged. "I mean, I don't really know. I got knocked out before you."

The image of the child fainting into their mother's arm flashed before their eyes, and something cold exploded inside them. It was quickly calmed by the sight of the child though, simpering as always. They tried to hold on to the image in their mind, but it quickly slipped away from their grasp. "I… don't remember too well."

"Me neither." Frisk frowned. "But I _did_ check downstairs. The exit was still there, so that proves that you've convinced her, right?"

"Yeah…" Chara frowned, still confused. "Um, where _is_ mother?"

"Oh, she's in the-"

The sound of the doorknob turning interrupted them, and soon the door creaked open, revealing Toriel who came into the room holding a tray of steaming mug. She paused when she saw that they were awake but quickly changed her look of surprise into a smile. "You are awake." She stated, placing the tray on the floor near the bed as she knelt down. "How are you feeling, my sweet? I hope you are in the mood for hot chocolate?" She handed a mug over to Frisk who accepted it with a small smile.

The sense of dread that crept over Chara disappeared at their mother's soft tone. The cup of hot chocolate, of course, helped quite a bit too. "When have I ever not?" They smiled small, sitting up on their bed so that they can receive a mug as well. Their mother was quick to give them one. "Thank you."

The two children sat about sipping on their mugs, until Chara noticed their mother staring at them intently without a single break. They sighed, knowing that their mother wanted to talk to them regarding… well, everything. They gave her an understanding smile and she quickly turned to the child who was sipping at their drink obliviously.

"Frisk?" She called. "Can… Can Chara and I, perhaps, have a moment alone?"

Frisk volleyed their gaze back and forth between her and Chara.

_It's alright. Go ahead._

Frisk nodded in understanding. They jumped up, their mug in hand. Then, in a single breath, they approached Toriel, placed a small kiss on her cheek and skittered out of the room, a stream of giggle trailing behind them.

Toriel placed her palm over the kissed spot while Chara rolled their eyes, exasperated.

She giggled. "Interesting child, are they not?"

"You don't know the half of it."

She looked out at the open door and sighed. She seemed to ponder on something for a bit before she spoke without turning, "They are such a tiny thing. Would you believe me if I told you that I was actually frightened of them only half an hour ago?"

Chara turned a quizzing eyes.

She laughed. "Oh yes, after what I said and done in front of them, I am surprised that they aren't trying to escape my presence the first chance they get."

"Mother…" Chara whispered.

"I literally knocked them out, and I was so scared of how they would react when they woke up, I nearly thought of hiding away." She giggled again, a hushed noise just barely above a sigh. "But I stayed there, watching over you both, and do you know what they said to me the moment they woke up?"

She didn't wait for an answer.

"They said, 'Hey, Ms Toriel, are your fur made of cotton candy? Because you sure look sweet today.'"

Chara gaped. "They did _not_."

"They _did_." She giggled.

"Oh, the _nerve_ of that child. Where do they even get off being that uncouth?" They grumbled. "Is this the norm these days? I do not remember the youth of my days acting so foul."

Their mother giggled and was still giggling after a few moment, so Chara smiled to themselves and sat there, waiting for her to be done.

Soon, however, it became apparent that she wasn't going to stop, because as the giggles went along, it slowly, but surely, turned into a series of sobs.

By the time they realised what was happening, she had buried her face into her hands, bawling, her shoulders shaking as her wails filled the air.

Unable to bear the sight, Chara placed a supportive hand over her upper arm.

"I'm sorry." She finally gasped at the touch. "I'm so sorry, my sweet. I'm sorry for what I've done to you and Frisk. I am a fool. A silly old fool who doesn't know any better."

"Mother, no. It's alright. I understand."

"No, it is not alright. I told myself that it was for you, but that was a lie. It was for me. All for me. My expectations. My loneliness. My fear. I was being selfish. I couldn't let you go and I almost ruined your life because of it. Forgive me, my sweet. Please… Forgive me."

Chara pulled her into an embrace, their arms wrapped around her neck. "Everything is alright. We still love you, mother, the child and me both. Nothing will change that."

Toriel buried herself into the embrace, sobbing harder, letting all of her fears and guilt pour out into the cry. Chara held her through it, petting her back and allowing her to just… let it all go.

From the corner of their eyes they saw Frisk peeking into the room, hiding behind the doorframe. They sent the monarch a worried look which Chara returned with a quick shake of the head and a small reassuring smile. The child smiled back weakly and quietly left.

The crying session lasted a few minutes, and when it was done, the two of them still clung onto each other, just enjoying each other's presence and not wanting to do anything else. Eventually, though, Toriel pushed herself out of the embrace, wiping the little remnants of her tears.

"Oh, well, that was embarrassing." She laughed.

"Not at all." Chara reassured, and waited for her to clean up. "Umm… mother?"

"Yes, my sweet?"

They twiddled their thumbs. "I noticed that your robe is cut when you walked in. That definitely wasn't there before lunch. What… exactly happened downstairs?"

Toriel looked down at the cut in question and frowned. "You do not remember, do you? I was thinking you wouldn't."

Chara shook their head. "I only recall up to the point where you slipped and fell."

"Oh, of course you would remember _that._ " Toriel joked, then continued seriously. "I'm afraid you had a breakdown of sort. Possibly triggered by the stress of our fight. You… lost control."

"Oh." Chara sagged, knowing how violent they tend to get when they were having an episode. They once hurt one of the guards enough to warrant stitches. At least that explained why they have no real memories of it and the odd sensation they got when trying to remember it. "Did I hurt you?" They asked guiltily.

"No. Just my poor robe." Toriel joked again. "And there is no need for you to feel guilty. If anything I should be apologising to you for putting you in such a stressful state."

Chara smiled and placed their hand upon her shoulder, which she reciprocated by placing her own hand over theirs.

The pair stayed like that for some time, but like before, it needed to come to an end. Again, Toriel lifted her hand first.

"Now..." She cleared her throat. "I suppose I must ask, when do you plan to leave?"

Chara lingered their hand on her arms a moment longer. "We can stay for a bit longer if you want."

She seemed to consider the option. It was tempting, for sure, but eventually she shook her head. "No. You need to go soon. It is as you said: Your father needs to know. It is unfair to keep the truth from him. And Frisk must be dying to go home as well. They must have a family waiting for them after all."

"Yeah..." Chara said, though it was only now that they were realising that they didn't know anything about the child when it came to their life _above_ ground. Why was that, they wondered. Chara didn't like talking about the world above, but did the child not like it either? What was their life like above? They did say that their mother was going to adopt them. That gave sort of a hint, but not really much in the end. It wasn't important right now, Chara supposed, but it _was_ something to think about in the future.

"Besides, if you stay any longer, I cannot guarantee that I won't start acting irrational again." Toriel smiled wryly. "You need to go before I'm tempted."

Chara nodded in understanding. "Then we shall leave today."

She winced, but nodded along. "A wise decision." She took Chara's hand into her own, and grasped it tight, feeling the smaller digits in her palm and marvelling at how big the difference in size was. Her hands were enveloping theirs completely. How long will it stay that way though, she wondered. Her child will grow up very soon, she wasn't going to get much more chance to do this anymore. "But even so, would it be possible if we could just… stay like this for a bit? Just a moment would be enough. I just…"

Chara placed their other hand over hers and rubbed their thumb in a soothing circle. "I don't have to leave right this instant."

She smiled gratefully, then sat back, leaning into the bed for comfort, as well as better proximity to her child.

They remained like that for another half an hour, along with Frisk who came in to join them after they got bored of waiting.

Toriel sat, sandwiched between the two children, holding their hands. She didn't know whether or not she'd made the right decision then. She didn't know if she could handle being responsible for another's death, but she had decided: better to give them a chance to live, than to let them rot away for the rest of their lives.

Chara was strong, and despite their puny appearance, Frisk appeared quite resourceful too. She had to trust her children and their abilities.

All was going to be alright.

It had to be.

* * *

"Do you have everything you need?"

The cold air slapped onto them, but Chara managed to appear strong in front of their mother. They rolled their shoulder and made their bag rustle, an action Frisk quickly mimicked with their own mini backpack. "I believe so. Thank you for everything mother."

Toriel patted them both on the head. "You two be good now. And remember to call every day, and to call if you ever need anything, yes?"

"We'll remember." Chara smiled. "Well then… We're off."

Toriel hesitated only for a second before nodding in understanding. "Of course. I love you, my sweet. Be home soon. And though we've only just met, little one," She turned to Frisk. "I feel this great sense of connection with you as well. Please stay safe. And goodbye. I hope you find your way home safely."

Frisk ran to hug her, and she knelt down to return the embrace. Chara moved in next, giving their mother one last hug and an embarrassed peck on her cheek which Frisk mimicked as well.

With a final smile and one extended look down at her children, Toriel turned and walked back into the Ruin. The gate groaned shut behind her, leaving the children to face the dark, snowy path alone.

_Not alone._ Frisk reminded themselves, facing the road that they've walked so many times before. They turned to the monarch. _Are you ready?_

Chara bit their lips, staring down the dark, lifeless road. They sighed. _As much as I could be. Shall we?_

_Yeah, let's._

* * *

The sound the phone ringing pulled Sans out of his thoughts. He picked up the call without checking the number.

"'yellow?"

" _Sans. It's Alphys. Where are you?"_

Sans dropped his legs from the countertop and sat upright on his chair. "at work. one of my guard stations around snowdin. why?"

" _You have to… oh my god. You have to go to the Ruin's exit. It opened a minute ago and…"_ Alphys breathed heavily into the speaker several times. _"Sans, it's happening. It's the seventh human. The final human is here."_

Sans nearly jumped out of his seat, and unfortunately, it wasn't due to the same reason as his friend whose excitement stemmed from the prospect of breaking the barrier. No, his non-existent veins were pumping right now due to the secret info that his friend wasn't privy to: All those time manipulations originated from the Ruins, his hand came to him from a time machine, and now a human was coming out from the gate that had been sealed off for decades on end. There was no way this was a coincidence. They were all linked somehow, and this human was a huge, _huge_ part of it. "w-wow. that's some heavy stuff to lay on me, alphs. who is it? is it a kid again?"

" _Kids, actually. There're two of them. They came out of the Ruins together. They seem to be friends."_

_two humans. crap. that's never happened before either._ Sans was beginning to sweat. "where are they now?"

" _They just passed camera W-002_. _You can still catch them if you're-"_

"i'm already there." He didn't bother saying goodbye before hanging up. His eyes lit up, consuming his world in a shroud of darkness.

When he looked around again, he was standing by the exit to the Ruins, and before him was a snowy path with two sets of footprints walking out of it. Just over in the distance was a pair of silhouettes walking side by side.

He shoved his hands into his pockets, and took a deep breath. "okay, sans. it's cool. just relax and act natural." He rummaged his pocket until a whoopee cushion was in his grasp.

He was ready.

"time to get my game on."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Yeah… that was a bit long. I thought maybe I should split it in two but couldn't decide where the best place for that would be. Plus if I did split it in two, I'd have one scene for Sans each chapter and that'll be a bit disjointed. The placement of the scenes were already weird (to me), so I didn't want to mess it up even more. On top of that, I think I rushed a bit in the end, but I've been slaving over this for a month, and really just want to get it out there.**
> 
> **As you can see I have my doubts about this chapter, but I think I need to leave it be. I'm thinking, if I really wanted this thing better/perfect or whatever, I'll need to do a full revision AFTER I finish the entire story first (I guess it's the thing about most fanfictions. You're always releasing what is essentially your first draft).**
> 
> **Anyway, regarding Toriel: There're different types of portrayal for her around the net, but I personally like to think that underneath all that purple robe she is ALL! MUSCLES! She just doesn't like to use it much, especially against kids like little Frisk :P**
> 
> **Ideas abandoned for this chapter: Charisk karaoke, Charisk slow dance, and Charisk hip shaking competition with Chara totally not staring at Frisk's ass.**
> 
> **Up next: Meet the skelebros**


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Wow, I'm constantly late these days. I'm sorry about this. I've hit a major writer's block and though I wish it doesn't show in this chapter, I get the feeling that it will. It's a bit all over the place, I think.**
> 
> **I have the final fight written for this story, as well as the ending, but I can't seem to think of the proper steps required for the story to get there. I'll think of something, I'm sure, and hopefully in a way that makes sense.**
> 
> **But for now, on with the show~**

* * *

Chara walked down the familiar snowy path, surrounded by an army of dead trees that spent much too many years without sunlight to grow, but was in too cold a climate to rot.

_Dreary._ They thought to themselves, and marvelled at just how much a simple hanging lamps and a handful of strangers walking by could change the atmosphere.

Back in their days, when the Ruins wasn't sealed off from the inside, the monsters were almost always travelling down this very path, opening up street shops and guards setting up some hanging lights so that the path would be a bit brighter and warmer.

Chara and Asriel used to come down and play around these parts often as the little prince was never too fond of the humidity of Waterfall and absolutely abhorred the heat of Hotland. The two of them would do their best covering his fur with snow so that when they left, it will keep him cool long enough to get past Hotland and make it home without drenched in his own sweat. It never worked of course, since the snow melted by the time they were through Waterfall, and the moisture from the melted snow just made the trip worse when they got to the volcanic areas.

_I suppose it did something in the end though,_ Chara remembered fondly. _He always got a cold afterwards and made him bedridden for a day. Such a silly boy he was._ Sighing with nostalgia, they turned to look at the little child beside them whose head was ducked happily down at their feet, pressing into the snow, making a soft, muffled crunch with each step. _But now I am stuck with this silly child instead, aren't I?_

The moment they thought the words, Frisk's head whipped up and gave them a curious smile. _Did you say something?_ They asked happily.

Chara smirked and shook their head. _It was nothing, dear. Go back to playing with the snow._

The child tilted their head, as though observing for a hidden clue with their words, but simply nodded and went back to the snow stepping as they were told soon after.

Chara sighed, a small stab of pain stinging their heart at the sight of the happy kid. Back in the Ruins, back with their mother and inside a house so similar to the one at New Home, it was easy to forget about what had happened to them. But here, out where they and Asriel used to come out to play so many times, made it really hit home the reality of what had happened: He was gone. Their brother was gone.

They didn't cry. They hadn't cried for a dead child in a long time, even before their own death because, truly, what good did it do? It was pointless to cry, to grieve, to wonder what he would have been like as an adult, to wish that they could have been nicer to him, to regret not telling him they loved him just one more time. It was all desires of a wishful heart: Foolish, and better buried along with the dead.

Despite knowing all of this however, and trying their best to stand by those knowledge, it was difficult to completely numb the pain. It would come with time, they were sure, but for now... yes. They supposed they would just have to live with it. World was unfair at times, but if you didn't want to play by its rules, you were going to find yourself at the edge of a cliff sooner than you'd like.

_At least I know that he's in a better place now._ They smiled bitterly. _God knows if anyone, he's the one who deserves to make it._

"Chara... Are you... thinking about Asriel?"

Chara looked over to found Frisk giving them a sad pout.

Their first instinct was to lie, to tell the child that they weren't doing anything of the sort. But they didn't go through with it. They didn't really feel the need. "Yes, I was." They admitted.

"I'm... sorry for your loss." Frisk mumbled. It was clear that the child didn't really know what to say to them. Have they ever experienced such loss in their life?

They wanted to smile in appreciation, but their heart was a touch too raw for it. "It's alright dear. It's all in the past."

"But not for you." Frisk pushed.

"He's not the first person I've lost in my life. I can handle it."

"You shouldn't have to handle it. We're too young still."

The child was being insistent as always. Chara smirked bitter-sweet. "You are kind. But I'm afraid that is a foolish statement."

"Why do you say that?" Frisk frowned.

"Because loss is a part of life, and to say that children needn't learn it is misguided. Loss will happen, and to not prepare them for it would be far more cruel in long run." They sighed, their eyes staring at the dark woods, but their mind seeing something else entirely: a large piss stinking hallway filled with people in molding white gowns; Children roaming about amidst them aimlessly, looking for their parents who will never come. They trip on the oceans of filth on the floor and get trampled on by the adults. If they're lucky they'll die. They'll stand to live another fear filled day if not. "No. One must prepare children to be independent as much as they can, whenever they can. Ignorance is bliss only when you can guarantee it will last forever."

There was no doubt that Frisk felt their sorrow as the child gazed up at them with the saddest eyes even a little puppy would be jealous of. It was a sweet gesture, Chara had to admit, to have a sympathetic soul who quite literally shared your feelings. But for them this whole conversation had taken a path that they weren't too happy with.

Rolling their eyes, Chara reached out and pinched the child on the cheek.

"Ow!" Frisk yelped, jerking away from the offending fingers, and rubbed their stinging cheek. "Ow… Why did you do that?"

"Because you were moping, dear." Chara grinned fiendishly at the pouting child. "Since we will be traveling together, let's set up some rules, shall we? Rule number one: No moping in my presence. Moping children are useless, and I have very little need for useless _anything_."

It was interesting to see the child's face change from confusion, to relief, then to a pouting anger. "Well, gee. Thanks. Good to know I'm not allowed to mope or else you'll throw me away like garbage."

"Goodness, I won't throw you away like ' _garbage'_ you little drama queen-"

"Says the drama empress here." Frisk stuck out their tongue.

Chara blinked in shock. "Well, now. I am going to ignore that comment and your gall to interrupt me out of the sheer goodness of my heart." They smiled sickeningly sweet. "But as I was saying: I'm not going to 'throw you away'. No, that'll be a waste. I'll just rile you up like I am now. Anger is so much better than sadness, no? So much more productive, I find."

The angry puffing of cheek said the child thought different. "You shouldn't make sad people angry. That's just mean." They huffed.

"And trying to cheer someone up takes so much more time and effort." Chara countered. "Getting them angry only takes a few choice actions and words, and voila! They are full of energy again. Energy they'll probably spend trying to get back at you, but at least that's better than just sitting there all day, wasting away."

"Whatever you say, Your Royal Meanie-ness." Frisk grumbled.

Chara raised their brows, again surprised by the level of snark in the child's words. They tilted their head back in a loud laughter. "You are being quite amusing today. I find it most agreeable."

"Of course you would. Only you find being mean 'amusing'."

Chara grinned, about to tell the child that they were the same in an opposite way: the kid could only get amusement in 'nice' things, and never in any type of black or dry humour.

Before they could say those things, however, a loud echoing snap from the forest behind gave them pause.

Their smile vanished to thin air, and they whipped their head back, staring daggers into the dark path behind them over their shoulder.

Nothing.

The path was empty just as it was before. The cold wind breezed them by and swept away at the dead forest beyond, creating an ocean of clicking rattles of the dead branches shaking and falling. But beyond it, there were no other noise, no other signs that indicated anyone else being there.

_Am I hearing things?_ Their eyes narrowed at the broken branch lying on the path in the distance. _No..._

Pursing their lips, they grabbed the pouting child's wrist and pulled them close against their will.

"Whoa, hey!" The child protested at the rough treatment and Chara was quickly shush them, needing their eyes and ears alert for what could possibly be out there. Unfortunately for them, the child didn't seem to understand the situation they were in and continued to talk.

"Chara?"

"Shh _."_ Chara hissed.

"What's wrong?"

" _Shh."_ They hissed again, but the child was being their usual insistent self.

"Is there-"

"Shush."

"But I think-"

"Be _quiet!"_

"Listen to m-!"

"I said, _shut up,_ you noisy little _brat!"_

The child recoiled back, shrinking in fear at the quiet, yet angry outburst. Chara recoiled back too, guilt slapping them across the face like a physical blow, wiping their glowering expression away. _Shit._ They cursed, though what they probably needed to do was apologise instead. "Child… I…"

A footstep echoed behind them.

The monarch's lips slammed shut in an instant.

They didn't turn around this time, only twisting their head a slight and focusing on the noise around them.

There were no more steps. Just more of the distant crinkling of dead trees. Chara wasn't fooled this time though. Something was going on. They were starting to think that they weren't alone.

"Ch-Chara?" The child voiced tentatively as carefully as one would walking about a minefield.

There was a movement in the corner of their eyes.

Chara didn't waste time. They grabbed the child by their wrist and ran.

Frisk yelped as they were yanked forward again, this time into a full sprint. They told their partner to slow down, their shorter legs as well as their shock making it hard to catch up, but Chara wasn't listening to them. They were too busy concentrating on the loud footsteps that boomed after them.

The moment after they began running, the steps became louder, faster. Despite the distance the children were trying to make, the booming thuds only got louder and louder. Their chaser was right on their heels. It was on a chase. Something was chasing them, something that didn't want to be noticed until now.

_Shit._ Red alarms blared in their mind. _Shit shit shit!_

They ran, as fast as their admittedly short legs could take. They didn't even try to find out who or what it was that was chasing them. In their experience, that only slowed you down, and when you're a kid, every step counted. A single misstep could mean the end.

"Ch-chara! Wait! Please!" The child pled, yanking back on the arm that pulled them along, and though Chara heard them loud and clear, they didn't take the time to comprehend the words. The only thing they knew right then was running, escaping and keeping the two of them safe.

Somewhere amidst their rapidly panic struck mind, Chara knew that they were being ridiculous. There was no way that whatever was chasing them could be anything other than a monster that saw a human and either wanted to talk to them or capture their soul. They should be meeting them face to face and talk it out, not run away like a frightened cat. But the situation was too familiar for them, much too real: They were in a dark forest, an unknown chaser behind them, no help to be found, and a little child relying on them for protection. How it all ended, they already knew, and they weren't about to let it happen all over again.

" _Where are we going?"_ The ghosts in their mind spoke to them, sending a wave of cold horror through Chara's entire being. _"Are we going home, Charlotte? Am I going to see my mommy again?"_

They pushed away the memory. This was neither the time or the place for it. That part of their life was over. They didn't ever need to experience it again. They promised themselves that. The child kept screaming at them to stop, but they just kept on running.

The pair made it to the end of the path where a shabby wooden bridge with an odd archway awaited them. It was only leading them over to another passage, but the fact that their chaser had to run over the bridge as well gave them small comfort, a ray of hope. The bridge was a choke point where they could stop the chaser in their track. They just had to make it over the bridge. That's all they needed to do.

"Humans…."

Chara nearly froze in their track.

A shadow was coming out of the trees and was heading towards the bridge, a short but stout figure that could block their path by just standing in front of the bridge's narrow entrance.

To their horror, Chara realised that the footsteps behind them were gone, and was now coming from in front of them. Their chaser had somehow gotten ahead of them and was now moving to block their path. Their only means of escape.

The child yelled something at them, but Chara wasn't listening. They threw the child aside, hoping they will be smart enough to hide away, then pulled out their dagger and charged full speed towards the shadowed figure.

The figure froze but made no further move, giving them ample time to reach and slash down on them with full force.

The figure sidestepped the attack at the last moment, prompting Chara to twist their blade sideway, which they dodged again by hopping backward.

Fortunately for Chara, doing so meant that the chaser now found themselves standing right on the edge of the cliff.

"Whoa…" The figure muttered in their, _his,_ deep, chuckling voice. He tried to balance himself out, to keep from falling backwards into the chasm below.

Chara saw the chance and didn't hesitate.

They flicked their dagger around into a reverse grip, and shoved the blade into the figure's chest.

Their adrenaline boomed with excitement at the kill, and somewhere in the back of their mind, they heard the child scream in horror.

* * *

#  **Chapter 8**

Frisk breathed hard, their hands over their mouth as tears pooled around their wide, horror stricken eyes.

They were regretting not telling Chara about Sans beforehand now. They knew that Sans was going to creep up to them and perform his usual scare prank as he had proven to do with every iteration, but they had decided to keep quiet about it to Chara in hopes that they could witness the monarch out of their element: The bossy monarch scared enough to cling on to _them_ for a change. It was supposed to be funny, a little joke.

Well, they certainly managed to scare Chara, and it was in no way what they had hoped to see.

For a moment, nobody moved. Frisk, for one, was too shocked to do so; Sans stood in place, his eye sockets black and empty as the chasm behind him; and Chara was right before him, their dagger hovering just above his chest while their entire arm was held mid-air, wrapped inside a dark blue magic.

He wasn't hurt.

Nobody was dead.

Frisk wanted to sigh in relief, but they knew that the situation was far from over. Not until they convinced Chara to seize their attack.

The monarch struggled, trying to move their arm away from the skeleton, but realised that they were caught, trapped in his magic.

_Trapped._ Frisk heard Chara hiss to themselves in shock. _No. No no no no no. Not like this. Not now. Not again._

_Ch...Chara._ Frisk called out quietly, cautiously. They didn't know why Chara was acting like this but they knew that if they let this continue, the monarch was going to do something they will all regret. _It's okay. You're not trapped. He doesn't want to hurt us. He's good. He's a friend._

Their reassuring words fell on deaf ears.

The panic inside Chara seemed to ignite like a match to a gasoline, and before Frisk knew it, the monarch summoned their magic blade with their free arm and brought it down on their immobile one, right on the edge of where the blue magic was wrapping around it. There was no intention of stopping until their limb was cut clean off.

"whoa!" Sans yelled the same time as Frisk screamed.

The blade reached their green sweater and cut through the fabric, and at the same instant the blue magic glowed bright and flung Chara's arm to the side, away from harm, before dissipating into the air.

The monarch stumbled at the sudden jerking motion but took no time in recovering. They leapt forward and slashed again, and Sans hopped away a few times in quick succession until he was well away from Chara, as well as the cliff. The monarch chased after him, relentless in their attack, eyes wide and crazed.

That was when Frisk decided to leap into the fray.

The child rushed forward, placed themselves between their friend and their charging partner. The effect was immediate.

Chara's dash came to a dead halt, and they kicked at the ground to jump back, their dagger still held up at a chest level. Their expression was blank, a cold calculating look that was solely focused on one thing: murder. If not for Frisk leaping in and wrapping their little arms around Chara's waist, the monarch would have surely gone around the child for another strike.

_No, stop this!_ Frisk yelled, putting all of their weight onto their hold, anchoring the monarch to the ground.

Chara looked down, smiled, then pulled Frisk around behind them, hiding the child from the chaser. _It's okay, sweetie. I'll keep you safe. I'll kill the bad men and I'll keep you safe._

Frisk blinked at the gentle, almost babying tone Chara was using. It was clearly meant to be comforting but a frozen shiver ran up their spine instead.

_He's not a bad man! He was just making a joke._ They explained in a hurry, gripping the monarch's arms in emphasis, but Chara's eyes were fixed on the skeleton, wide and unhinged. They were not going to stop until Sans was dead. Frisk didn't know what else to do. They lifted their hands and grasped the monarch by the sides of their face. _Look at me Chara. Look at me!_

Chara didn't. _I see you. I've got you. I'll kill you. We're not going back. No. No we're not._

_Listen to me!_ Frisk gripped them harder, trying to forcibly push their gaze downwards. _You aren't in danger. He's not taking you anywhere. He's our friend!_

_You must hide, sweetie. Close your eyes and shut your ears._ Pale fingers around the blade flexed. _Think of something nice, ignore everything that you hear. I'll be with you shortly._

_Chara..._ Frisk begged. _Please, he's a monster. He's one of your people! You are their ruler! You live to serve them, remember? Don't fight him, please!_

Something seemed to go through in that moment, and the monarch's entire body tensed. _A... monster._

Frisk blinked, then looked up to find a pair of blood red eyes gazing back at them in confusion.

_A monster._ Chara repeated slowly, then stared at the skeleton before them as though they were seeing him for the first time. _He's a monster._ _He's one of mine._

_Yes._ Frisk smiled shakily. _Yes, he is. He's not going to hurt us. He's a friend._

_A… friend…_ Chara repeated as though they'd never heard the word. They took their time considering the term, digesting it as they watched Sans, and eventually, their fear began to dissipate into the ether. _A monster. One of mine..._

A series of tense silence ensued, and slowly, Chara relaxed their form into a calm stand, vanishing their magic blade. Their dagger, however, was still tight in their grip. Their tense expression turned into a dark glower.

_He snuck up on us. Chased us. Why?_ They asked the child.

_It was supposed to be a prank. He was trying to scare us on purpose._ Frisk tried to explain, but of course, Chara's annoyed glare didn't let up a single bit. They pouted sullenly. _It... it was supposed to be a joke._

_If this is what passes for a joke these days, I shudder to think of what people would watch for entertainment. That was... in poor taste._

_He wasn't trying to be mean._ Frisk pled. _Please. Please, don't fight him Chara. He's one of my closest friends. I can't bear to see it._

Chara was still for another moment. _I'm not going to fight one of my people, child. I was merely…_

They trailed off and didn't continue, their face pressing into a stern frown. And before Frisk could ask what they were going to say, they placed their dagger back in its place and turned to Sans.

The skeleton seemed to back up a bit but otherwise didn't react to the gesture.

"Greetings, good sir." Chara bowed carefully. "I apologise for my terribly rude behaviour. I had hastily assumed that you meant us harm and made a rash judgement. I do hope you can forgive me."

Frisk felt half of the knot releasing around their heart, finally feeling like they were going somewhere. They watch Sans for his reaction, hoping that he'd buy the monarch's faux pleasantry and end this unplanned hostility. Unfortunately, the skeleton's eyes were still missing amidst the dark of his sockets and they shuddered at the creepy, toothy grin that accompanied them.

_Oh no..._ Frisk mumbled, shirking away closer to Chara.

They hated it when Sans got like this. He was such a cool and fun person to hang around with normally and they loved him to bits just as they did any of their other friends, but from time to time, he got like… this. His eyes disappeared, the air around them turned tense, sour, and the goofy grin on his face suddenly wasn't so goofy anymore. It was scary, and though they didn't agree with how Chara reacted to the situation, they were beginning to think perhaps that there was some merit in the monarch freaking out about Sans chasing them through the dark woods as he did.

The air was still tense, but after what seemed like an eternity, Sans' white pupils returned, releasing them from the thick atmosphere that had been pressing down on them.

"heh, no harm done kiddo." He shrugged casually with a chuckle. "i mean, this is my fault too, you know? i shouldn't have tried to scare you like that."

Frisk breathed in relief and Chara smiled apologetically. "Not at all. You were merely pulling a prank. I am the one who reacted badly to it."

"nah, my joke was in poor taste. you thought you were in danger and were just trying to protect your uhh..." He looked Frisk up and down. "your sibling? i mean i can respect that. family's important."

The two humans shared a look and Chara let out a melodic laugh. "Thank you, but you are mistaken. This human is no sibling of mine." _Siblings? Us? Ridiculous._ They chuckled quietly.

_Hey, what's wrong with that?_ Frisk grumbled.

Red eyes turned to them incredulously. _Do you really want us to appear a sibling?_

The child puffed out their reddening cheek, all stubborn-like. _I-I don't know._

_Of course you don't._

Frisk grumbled again, and they had no doubt from Chara's amused grin that their partner was having a laugh out of it.

"oh. alright." Sans shrugged, unaware of the conversation going on between the two. "from how close you guys were i just assumed you were siblings."

Frisk smiled to themselves, a drop of happiness blooming inside them despite Chara's apparent disdain for it. Were the two of them that close now? They hoped they were, though they were quite certain that Chara deny anything of such. They wondered what their relationship looked like to Sans given that they weren't siblings.

"well, i guess she's your girlfriend then. or boyfriend? can't exactly tell your gender from a glance, sorry."

Frisk blinked.

_Oh..._

Simultaneously, both children's face turned crimson, and they turned to one another before quickly whirling away the moment their eyes met. It was only then that Frisk realised that they had been clinging onto Chara's arm the entire time, and they jerked away as though they'd been burned, suddenly conscious of their proximity.

The monarch cleared their throat, trying to appear more composed than they probably felt. "Ehem, I-I assure you sir, this child is neither my boyfriend or girlfriend." They tried to explain. "We are…. Partners. Yes, we are partners, you see?"

Sans blinked, seeming rather amazed. "wow, humans let you marry this young? that's pretty extreme."

If they pair hadn't been embarrassed before, they certainly were now. Their face was pretty much on fire.

Despite their mortification though, images of the two of them at a little church, having a small ceremony with their family and friends flashed in Frisk's mind. They immediately slapped themselves for it, burying their face into their hands with steam coming out their ears.

Chara was in a similar situation, though they had more class than to simply hide away. They bit the inside of their cheek and maintain a relatively straight face, though when they tried to speak, they still failed miserably in forming proper words.

If Sans noticed the human's mortification, he didn't show it. "well, i guess props to you for being such a good, protective… uhh…" He looked Chara up and down. "wife? husband? sorry, can't tell you from just looking either."

Chara bit their cheek harder, their face burning bright at the prospect of being called a 'wife'. Their tongue was becoming more rigid and useless by the second and they tried to push down on the ever growing embarrassment of the situation.

But then, a sudden realisation dawned upon them, and their embarrassment ignited into a boiling anger at the awful truth: "You are _toying_ with us."

Their barbed tone made Frisk snap out of their thoughts as well, and the child turned with worry, suddenly on edge once more.

"heh, ya got me. sorry but I couldn't help it." Sans chuckled obliviously. "You guys are humans right? I never get to pull anything on you guys living here. It was a once in a lifetime chance and I couldn't miss the opportunity."

"I… see…" Chara said calmly, though Frisk could feel their insides bubbling with indignant rage.

_Not good._ The child thought. Chara never liked Sans when they were a ghost either. 'Too lazy' they had said of him once, his humour too crude and lowly, and most of all, they really, _really_ didn't like his lack of sense of duty. Frisk had wished that the new meeting would somehow get the monarch seeing Sans in a new light, but it appeared that that plan was about to ride off a cliff.

They tried to calm Chara down, but the moment they moved to touch their arm they were slapped away. "Well, I hope you are satisfied with your… _prank_ , Mr…"

"oh, right. i'm sans. sans the skeleton." The monster pushed out his hand in a friendly gesture.

_Oh no._ Frisk tried to stop the handshake from happening, but Chara had already grasped the offered hand.

"Charmed. I am Chara Dre-"

A loud boisterous noise much too putrid for words filled the air.

Frisk slammed their eyes shut, not wanting to see the look on Chara's face as the long, dragging noise of someone passing gas continued on for five seconds too long. They used to suppress a happy giggle every time this happened, but now with the new Chara, every 'pbbrrt' and `squee` from the whoopee cushion was like getting stabbed in the ear with a tac pin. It was quite literally painful to listen.

The jeering noise trailed off and the silence that followed was utterly crushing.

A small snicker scratched the air, and soon enough Sans cracked up into a deep laughter that echoed through the dark forest. Neither humans found the same amount of humour in the situation, however.

Frisk turned to Chara with a pale expression and, as they thought, found them about as amused as someone being stabbed. In fact, the way Chara was looking at Sans right then, it was a wonder how he wasn't in a hundred pieces already.

"heheh, the ol' 'whoopee cushion in the hand' trick." The monster laughed, either oblivious or ignoring the fuming human. "It's always funny."

"Of course..." Chara ground out between their teeth.

_Chara, he's not trying to be disrespectful. He's just-_

_Shut up._ The monarch spat with tone so final it almost physically slammed Frisk down to the ground.

"anyway, as i said. i'm sans. i'm a part time guard here, out here looking for humans and all, you know? but, to be honest i don't really care about that, so no sweats."

Frisk winced again. Why did Sans constantly insist on digging his own grave? Chara's eyes narrowed at the admission of his laziness. "Indeed?"

"Yeah. I ain't gonna try to capture you or anything so you can chill. I mean, not a lot of monsters take that stuff too seriously you know? Most of them don't even know what a human looks like. Though I'll tell you, my brother? He's a human hunting fanatic."

_Good to hear that someone still has a sense of duty._ Frisk heard Chara spit with venom.

He looked over the pair's shoulder. "Actually I think that's him over there right now. You know what? I got an idea: you two should go through this gate thingy."

Chara looked over their shoulder. "If your brother is a human hunting fanatic, I don't think it will be wise for us to encounter him."

"sure, but that's alright. we'll get you two to hide while i talk to him."

They scoffed and seemed about to argue, so Frisk quickly grabbed their hand and coaxed them to follow. The monarch stumbled along, then pressed their lips thin and glared at them. _What do you think you're doing?_ They rooted their feet firmly on the ground.

_W-we're supposed to play along._ Frisk stuttered.

_YOU can play along all you want. I don't have to do anything this… this BUFFOON tells me!_

_Chara, come on. We've talked about this. We have to do this my way or else it won't work. Sans is a great friend once you get to know him, and he has lots of connection in the Underground too. It'll give us opportunity to meet many others peacefully rather than in battle._

_I'm not sure if I want to meet these people whom he calls his 'friends'. I can't imagine their standard being so refined._

_Ms Toriel seems to like him._

Chara's red eyes hardened and suddenly Snowdin's air became a few degrees colder. _I beg your pardon?_

An oppressing atmosphere settled around them, thick and suffocating, but Frisk stood firm through it all. _M-Ms Toriel talks to him quite often_. They explained. _He hangs out by the Exit and she often comes down to talk and joke with him through the door. They do it quite often and I think they're pretty good friends._

Chara glowered dangerously, and though the look wasn't technically directed at them, Frisk couldn't help but gulp at the burning red eyes flashing with barely contained rage.

"hey, uhh… you guys alright there?" Sans' voice sliced through the air and the pair whipped around to give him a forced smile.

"Quite." Chara said simply, "Forgive me. I was lost in my own thoughts."

"oh. yeah, that's cool, but my brother's heading this way right now pretty quickly so..."

The kids shared a look, one murderous and one pleading.

_I'm a monarch as well as a warrior. I don't need to hide away from anything._

_This is not the time Chara, please._

Chara pursed their lips, a low growl escaping their throat. Then with a deep breath, they turned and smiled at Sans which appeared pleasant enough despite the fact that their brows were slightly angled inwards. "Of course. Let us make haste then. Come, child."

Frisk didn't have to be told twice. Sighing in relief, they grasped their partner's hand tight and followed them without another word.

* * *

_yeesh... that was something._

Sans eyed the two children as they ran ahead of him over the bridge, the taller one taking the lead while the little one worked their leg to keep pace, like a baby duck trying to diligently follow its sibling. 'Cute' was the word he wanted to use, if only that knife wasn't there so visibly tucked behind the taller one's back.

To say that the encounter didn't go as expected would have been an understatement. Sans had approached the pair with cheap humour and pranks as he often tend to do with difficult situation, hoping to introduce himself in a goofy manner that will help the other drop their guard and allow him to see the person inside. It was a strategy he used many times in the past, and each attempt either proved to be successful or just ineffective in general.

He'd never seen his humour fail so bad that he'd get blindly attacked with a tempered blade.

He narrowed his gaze onto the taller human.

Chara, was it? He didn't get to hear their name in full, but he did hear them say that as their name before his whoopee cushion wiped all traces of amicable hospitality off their face. Not that there was much to begin with, but it was definitely something to see a person look at him as though they wanted to break every one of his bones.

The kid didn't like him much, that was for certain. Which was perfectly fine by him as he wasn't too fond of them either right now either. The kid was too stuffy and polite, and were much too quick to resort to violence. They didn't even try to injure him, just threw a killing blow at him as their first attack. If it had been any other monster that approached, they would probably be a pile of dust by now.

Not only that, the human knew goddamn magic, and it was somehow the same coloured blade spell as the King used with his trident. The fact that they tried to cut off their immobile limb using an orange blade meant that they knew how blue and orange spells worked. Add to that the fact that not a single monster in the Ruins supposedly knew how to use either coloured spell, proved that the two had been in Underground before.

Wordlessly, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialled a number. It only took one ring for it to be received.

_"Sans! Are you alright? That human just attacked you!"_

Sans sighed, "i'm fine alphs. see?" He waved his hand to his side where he knew a hidden camera was set up. "did you get anything in the knoppers report?"

_"No. No manipulation in this area so far."_

"hmm. which means that there was no reset done during our encounter." He figured as much, given how surprised the human had reacted to his appearance.

" _Do you think there should have?"_

"not exactly." He leered at the taller human in the distance. "hey, you still have the records of the previous humans, right?"

" _Y-yeah? It's all on the archives."_

"can you go through them and see if any of them ever displayed a magical potential?"

" _This is about the tall one? Chara?"_

"yeah."

" _Yeah, sure. I'll make a quick report for you to look at._

"thanks. i'm gonna tail them now. text me as soon as you see a disturbance in the timeline, okay?"

" _I will. Be careful Sans. I nearly had a heart attack when that human attacked you, you know?"_

"yeah. you and me both buddy. talk to you later, okay?"

_"See you."_ The call went dead.

Sans flicked off the phone and pushed it back into his pockets. He sighed, and found that it did little to undo the tight tension built around his shoulders.

The children were over by the plain where they were trying to hide behind the guard post. Chara didn't exactly seem happy with their circumstances but the little one was pulling them along, almost begging them all the way.

_hmm, the little one._

Sans watched the kid, narrowing his eyes in thought. That one hadn't said a single word in their encounter but it was obvious that they didn't want any conflict between the three of them. They appeared to be the grounding force that calmed the taller one's more violent tendencies, and while he was much appreciative of their effort, he couldn't help but wonder why: Why did the little human so adamant about their partner not killing him? He could chalk it up to a child's innocence and natural pacifism, but he was a monster that they just met and had been chased by through the dark woods with very questionable intentions. Maybe they found his pranks actually funny.

_or maybe the kid knows me_. _from another timeline._ Sans proposed. _but if they're the time traveller, then how does the taller one fit in?_ _are they both time travellers?_

There were too many questions here and too little evidence to go with. He needed to let the situation play out on it's own and see where everything leads.

"SANS! WHERE ARE YOU?! I BETTER NOT CATCH YOU SLACKING OFF AGAIN!"

Sans sighed. _welp, now i have no choice. back to investigating i suppose._

Tucking his hands in his pocket, he walked over the bridge and made his way to his brother waiting in the distance.

* * *

The two humans waited behind the guard post in perfect silence, though they probably could get away with a little noise given how loud Papyrus was being lecturing Sans about diligence and perseverance. Frisk peered over to their partner who was crouching besides them with their knees hugged to their chest silently, and sighed.

They'd hoped to introduce Papyrus to Chara at this point in time, but it appeared that that wasn't going to happen either, much like how they failed to introduce Sans in a more friendly manner. Nothing in this timeline seemed to go according to plan. Why did they even bother?

The monarch had been silent since they've gone to hiding, their mood immediately dying down from angry to now what seemed liked downright depression, mixed with a hint of the same terror they felt when being chased by Sans. Frisk felt their heart ache at the sight.

_Chara?_ They probed their partner's mind gently, hoping to bring the monarch out of this horrid emotion that felt like a knife tip pressing down on the back of their neck.

It took a moment for Chara to acknowledge the call with an answer, and even when they did, the feeling didn't go away. _Yes?_ They replied without looking.

_A… are you alright?_ Frisk started with the obvious.

_I'm fine._

Frisk winced at the dry tone. _Is this about what happened with Sans?_

Chara scoffed. _Which part? The part where he chased us through the woods like a damn maniac? Or the part where he was behaving like a disrespectful clown whose sense of humour is about as attractive as a pub toilet on friday night?_

Frisk's lips twisted into a half smile, oddly relieved to see the little bubble of anger, a bit of energy that said there was still life in them. Perhaps there was some merit to Chara's words when they said anger was better than moping. The child's expression turned sullen again as they clarified, _I'm talking about the part where you nearly cut your arm off just to escape his magic._

Frisk could almost see the metal walls being raised around Chara's heart as the monarch turned their head away to the side, hiding their face and avoiding eye contact. Though they had expected such response, the child sighed nonetheless.

_Please, Chara, don't shut me away._ They begged.

_That'd be difficult to do when I never opened up to you, don't you think?_

They flinched at the biting tone. _I just want to help you. Please._

_It doesn't matter. You can't help me._

_But I can. I can listen. I'll listen to anything you have to say._

_Well how about you listen to this then,_ They turned to glare with hate. _'I don't want your help, you useless, annoying brat. Leave. Me. Alone.'_

Frisk felt their chest ache at the insult and couldn't stop their brows from furrowing into an angry scowl. _Why... are you always so_ stubborn _? Why can't you ever just let me help?_ The child bit out, even while knowing that being angry wouldn't get them anywhere with Chara. If anything they were pretty much guaranteeing that Chara would push back.

_I can ask the same of you, child!_ Chara spat in response as expected. _Why can't you just let things go? I don't want your help, can't you see that?!_

_Well, what else am I supposed to do?!_ Frisk felt a rush of frustrated tears well up. _I feel you. I still feel you. You're scared and all I want to do is help you fight against it._

_You know nothing._ Chara hissed with a spiteful glare. _I am NOT afraid._

_But you ARE. I know you are._ Frisk placed their hand on Chara's and grasped the appendage tight before they could pull away. _You nearly, willingly, hurt yourself just to run away from Sans before you realised he was a monster. Do you know how I felt when you did that? Did you even feel me when you did?_ They quickly wiped at their eyes. _You didn't even bat an eye to do it. There were so many other options you could have taken yet you just..._ They sniffled. _You weren't thinking straight, and I want to know why. I just... I want to help you fight it. I don't ever want you to feel that scared again. I want to help you conquer your fears. If only you'd let me._

Frisk squeezed on Chara's hand, and for a moment, Chara's anger wavered, and made Frisk thought it they were finally able to convince their partner to open up. But in an instant the barrier was back up and they turned away again, their heart once again locked tight. _I don't have to tell you anything. Leave me alone. There is nothing you can do._

Frisk bit their mental tongue from retorting any further, feeling the chain around Chara's heart squeeze tighter the more they pushed. They gripped their fists tight, and would have stomped their feet on the ground too were they currently not hiding away from the skeleton brothers.

Why couldn't they ever do things the easy way? Why did it always boiled down to them arguing and bickering? It was unpleasant, taxing and so very exhausting. Sometimes, Frisk just felt like giving up like Chara wanted them to, but they couldn't, could they? They wanted Chara in their life as long as time would allow, and in order to do that they needed to be there for Chara whether they wanted them to or not. They didn't go through everything they did just to give up now.

_Remember why you did all of this._ They told themselves, being careful not to let the words seep through their connection. _Remember why you are here. You wanted this. This is what you wished for, so you deal with it._ They clenched their jaw tight. _The old Chara would have told me that._

They took in several long breaths and let it all out in a single sigh.

_Fine._ They began. _I won't ask you anymore. For now, I mean._ They tried to appear strong, but they were already so exhausted, they just ended up sagging like a dying flower. _Just… give it some thought, you know? Talking about your fears and problem really does help, I promise. I won't laugh at you, mock you, or think any less of you for doing it._

Chara was quick to snort. _Of course you won't. You won't have a tongue to speak of if you ever did._

_It's not because of that, silly._ Frisk explained wryly. _It's because we're friends._

Chara turned with wide eyes. _Are we now?_ They sassed. _I hadn't realise this. When did this happen?_

_If one of us don't start referring each other as friends, we'll never be one. If we start things off with just that, eventually we'll come to believe it and it'll become the truth._ Frisk said with a small smile. _You taught me that by the way, so you can't say I'm being dumb right now._

_Hmph. At least I know you do listen to my advice._ Chara grumbled.

_Hey I listen to your advice plenty of times,_ Frisk harumped, still smiling. _But I'm serious though. Give it some thoughts, and remember that I'm always here for you, okay?_

Chara hummed. It wasn't exactly an answer they supposed, but it probably was the best they'll get out of the monarch, so they accepted it for what it was. The two fell quiet, leaving their mind free to listen to the conversation beyond the counter.

"NO! I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THAT! WHAT IF A HUMAN COMES THROUGH HERE!?"

Chara visibly winced at the ear splitting voice. _Ugh, what on earth is that noise?_ They growled as though they'd just heard Papyrus for the first time.

_That's Papyrus. Sans' brother._ Frisk explained, not entirely sure about introducing one of their greatest friends in such manner. They didn't want to give Chara a bad impression of him, but one sentence in and it appeared they already failed.

_He's screaming at the top of his lungs! How will he hunt anything if he's announcing his position like that?_

_That's… actually his normal voice._

Chara's head whipped in shock before seeing how serious the child was being. They rolled their eyes, exasperated. _Ugh, I cannot believe these two had been assigned to a lookout duty. I can't believe those two are supposed to be these 'important friends' of yours!_

Frisk smirked, seeing an opening for a joke. _Don't worry Chara. The title of my world's bestest friend still belongs to you._

Chara's expression soured for a bit, and they were quiet for a some time. A long time in fact. Too long. The pair of blood red orbs were staring at them unblinkingly, though admittedly without malice.

Frisk bit their lips, feeling like they've made a mistake. Maybe that was not something they should have said so quickly after their latest bickering. They wished they could go back in time to take it back, but reminded themselves that they couldn't do that with Chara remembering everything.

_S-sorry_ They stumbled _. I shouldn't have said that. I'm just being selfish again, calling us friends like that when you didn't even agree to it. You don't have to if you don't want to, by the way. It's not like it'll make you any happy if we did. I mean, I just thought that… I wanted..._

The red orbs watched and the child gulped.

_Can you please stop staring at me like that?_

Chara blinked. _Ah, my apologies. I... wasn't mad at you or anything of the sort..._

Frisk sighed in relief. _It's alright. I was just being sill-_

_-I was thinking how you'd probably prefer me calling you my boyfriend or girlfriend more. I was measuring how viable such terms would be between us._

It was Frisk's turn to blink. They didn't immediately react, the topic changing so suddenly that their mind was hurrying to catch up.

Then the words finally sank in. And just like that, their face puffed into tomato red.

_W-what?_ They stuttered in shock. _W-what are you talking about?_

_It's what you want, isn't it?_ Chara said, completely serious, adding to Frisk's shock.

_No, of course not! W-why would you think that?_ The child placed their hands on their cheeks to hide their blush.

_Oh, don't think I didn't feel you when that clown referred us as such_. _You were happy weren't you? Even more so when he referred us as spouses._

_No, I wasn't!_ They protested, though in truth they didn't really remember how they felt due to how mortified they were back then. It was completely possible that they did feel immensely happy at being referred to as such. Spending the rest of their life with Chara didn't seem so bad to them. It won't always be sunshine and rainbows, but it'll certainly be an exciting life. _But still! I don't want any boyfriend or girlfriend yet! I'm not…! I'm not ready for that..._

_It's alright dear,_ Chara reassured knowingly. _You're ten now after all. It's about time you got curious about these things, no? You're already such a vile little things with your flirty ways, I'd be more surprised if you didn't._

_Those were jokes! I do it because it's fun to watch people react!_

Chara ignored them and hummed, placing an inquisitive finger on their lips as they eyed the child up and down like a merchandise. _Actually, now that I think about it, I've alway found you quite cute from the moment I've first laid eyes on you._ They leaned in so close that Frisk nearly demanded for some personal boundaries. _Yes, you've got lovely skin, a good facial structure, and a cute little voice. I don't know your heritage but you have an exotic charm about you. You are a VERY attractive child._

Frisk stammered, not knowing what to say but short half words that sounded more like baby gurgles than actual words.

_So? What say you then? Do you like me? I'm quite the catch I think. I can be anything you want, depending on what you are._ With that, Chara pushed the child over, caught them by their back, and leaned forward until their noses nearly touched. _Are you a pretty damsel whom I should woo with my wiley charm?_ They then pulled the child back up to a sitting position, turned around and leaned their back into their chest, rubbing their face softly into the child's neck. _Or are you a handsome gentlemen whom I should seduce with my beauty? You are such a cute little thing. I'll be whatever you want, darling. Just say the word._

Frisk couldn't answer, their face a sweating, flustered mess, their jaws flopped around aimlessly like fish on dry land. It was true that they'd always been a flirt with others, but never have they in their entire life been flirted _back_. They were still too young to be a target of such attraction.

Unless, of course, that person was a child as well. Specifically a child who is only three years older than Frisk physically _._

The child dared to look down at Chara and accidentally took a glimpse of the monarch's soft, pouting lips and snapped their eyes back up as though been shocked. Their whole mind fogged up pink and they were desperate for a way out. _Oh god. Oh god! What do I do?!_

Then, in a metaphorical equivalent of a water balloon popping over their head, Chara tilted their head back and let out a loud, mocking laugh, pulling Frisk out of their semi-mental breakdown.

_Oh, how I wish I could take a photo right now._ The monarch cackled joyously. _You are right darling, this IS quite fun. Your face is simply priceless!_

Frisk blinked then stared at the laughing monarch, before they realised what had just happened. With a single angry huff, they shoved Chara away, crossed their arms over their chest, and glowered with what they hoped were very angry eyes. It wasn't. And to undermine that just that much further, their cheeks were still flushed bright red. _Th… that was NOT funny._ They pouted weakly.

_Oh come now, there's no need for that. It was merely a jest, just as you've said. Why I wasn't trying that hard to hide it either._ Chara giggled again. _If it makes you feel any better, I don't want to have any relationship with a snot nosed little kid such as yourself._

_Not a snot nosed kid._ Frisk grumbled unintelligibly, their face still a tint of pink. _I'm gonna get you back for that. You just wait._

_I'm sure you will._ Chara smirked then leaned back into the counter, the tenseness of their earlier conversation all but gone from their relaxed form. _But in all seriousness, darling, I do still wonder: what are you? Are you a boy or a girl?_

Frisk frowned. _We've been talking to each other for how long and you're asking me that now?_ They huffed.

_I didn't think it important at the time. I was more focused on getting rid of you, if you remember?_ Chara waved their hand in a stabbing motion.

_Oh… yeah._ They sagged, unable to argue.

_Indeed. So? Tell me. What are you?_

They frowned again, not entirely sure how they should go about it. They've had this conversation with other people before and it was always such a pain to explain, especially with the elderlies. And considering Chara's real age, there was a higher possibility that they wouldn't really understand.

_Can I… not answer?_ Frisk tried tentatively.

_It's not a difficult question._ Chara frowned, their annoyance already clear.

_I know but… I'd rather not say._

_And why not?_ The monarch continued to probe.

_Because I don't want you to treat me differently because of it._ Frisk sighed. _I've had it happen on the surface many times. I've made friends, kids that I really liked hanging out with, then once they found out, they suddenly didn't want to talk to me. It's a stupid reason, but they were being pretty adamant about it. And even the adults, when they find out they start treating me different, putting me into groups and making me wear things. I have things I like, and I hate it when people tell me I shouldn't like them because they don't fit my gender._

Chara was quiet for a moment, taking the information in, and Frisk awaited their response with a bated breath.

_I'm still unclear._ Chara finally said. _But I suppose I somewhat understand. You don't wish to be treated a strapping young lad nor a fair maiden. Just as yourself._

_More like smelly boys and yucky girls._ Frisk giggled, feeling immensely relieved for their partner's understanding _._ They were a bit surprised too, though they supposed they should have expected it from someone who hid their gender from others as well. _Then what about you? What's your gender?_

The monarch quirked a brow. _You don't know? I'd have imagined you'd have gotten it out of the 'ghost me' aeons ago._

_I had my guesses, but we never talked about it. I was Frisk and you were Chara. We didn't need to know any more than that._

_How quaint._ Chara hummed. _Well, I'll have you know, I'm a boy._

Frisk blinked in shock, then scowled. _No you're not._

The monarch didn't even bat an eye in response, but Frisk still felt it: a cold explosion of emptiness that made them question whether they should have pointed out Chara's lie so blatantly. They turned their eyes away. The smirk that Chara wore was so cold it actually stung to look at. _And what evidence do you have to back up such claim, I wonder?_ The monarch laughed without a hint of amusement. _I thought you didn't know my gender._

_Umm. Well, I uhh... I've seen Ms Toriel pack your bag and she..._ Frisk coughed. _She put in some of… you know._ They coughed again, then whispered conspiratorially, _Lady's pads._

_... Oh._ It was Chara's turn to cough, their face losing their coldness and tinting pink. _Well, I am in my teens. It is only natural that I've started…_ They didn't finish. They cleared their throat and frowned in mild annoyance. _I would appreciate it in the future if you don't peek into my personal things, is that clear?_

Frisk ducked their head and nodded quickly, more embarrassed than they imagined they would be with the conversation, which they had thought was going to be not at all. All they were planning on was to tease Chara about the sanitary pads. They supposed they should have realised it was more than a bit childish to do so.

_Me and my big plans._ They scolded themselves, then to Chara they asked, _Why did you lie?_

Chara was reluctant to answer. In fact, Frisk almost thought they weren't going to answer, but just before the child could push, they spoke up. _It's… better that way._

The answer confused Frisk further. _What do you mean? How is telling someone you're a boy better than telling them you're a girl?_

Chara smiled at the innocent question, but it wasn't happy. Frisk could feel the age old sadness spreading through the monarch like thick ink. _More adults want you less when you tell them you're a boy._

Frisk didn't know why, but the way Chara said that made their skin crawl. _I.. don't get it._

_It's better that you don't._ _In fact, I'd rather keep my gender hidden if you don't mind_. _It's not like the monsters care for it one way or another anyhow._

Frisk still wasn't sure, but nodded along, deciding to end the conversation while they were ahead. They were happy that they had it, but it appeared that the more they talked, the more touchy the subjects got. It was all getting a bit out of hand.

The two fell quiet, settling into a silence that wasn't quite as comfortable as they made it out to be. After a minute of listening to the skeletons chatter on, Chara spoke up again.

_Look, child,_ they sighed. _I understand that you wish us to be... friends or whatever, but you must understand that I'm not... I'm just not a good friend material._

_You are._ Frisk quickly defended. _To me, you are._

_I know._ Chara smiled. _I cannot hope to understand how, but I know. And that's why I want to say I'm sorry for treating you as I do. I get angry so often, yell at you at the smallest things, yet you stay with me. You keep on trying. You persevere. I admire that, even though it annoys me so so much._

_T-thanks._ Frisk blushed at the unexpected stream of complements.

_No,_ I _thank_ you _. For keep trying._ Chara's scarlet eyes studied the child. _You are so much like him in that regards. I used to treat him so poorly at first too._ They added guiltily.

_Asriel was a good kid._ Frisk smiled which Chara reciprocated.

_Yes, he was._ They nibbled their lips, once again in deep thought. _I'm not ready to have a human friend. Not yet. And I'm certainly not ready to... share things about myself with one._

Frisk sagged, but their smile didn't leave. _It's alright. I understand._

_But…_ Chara continued. _Perhaps we can start things off by... calling each other that?_

_You mean 'friends'?_ Frisk turned to them with hope filled eyes.

_Yes..._ Chara gave a stiff nod. _F_ _riends. It is as you said. If we start by doing that, perhaps I will come to believe it too._

Frisk felt their heart thump, their soul warming up with glee. They approached Chara, carefully took their hand and smiled gratefully. The monarch turned away, but returned the gesture with a very light squeeze of their hand.

_Thank you. I promise I wi-_

"you two seem to be having a good time."

The two children jumped and separated as though they'd been caught doing something forbidden. Frisk hid their burning face behind Chara while the monarch openly glared at the skeleton who was leaning casually on the counter, looking down at them.

"Do pardon us, but we would be immensely grateful if you could announce yourself before interrupting us in such manner next time." Chara spat as they stood up, helping Frisk up by their hand.

"but i did. like, five times. but you guys obviously didn't hear me so i sort of just… jumped in."

"Is that so?" Chara pursed their lips. "Hmph, well then, I apologise. We were… engaged in a deep conversation."

"oh, I saw." Sans chuckled. "are you sure you guys aren't dating? looked pretty cosy from where i was standing."

"I assure you, we are not." _I'm afraid the child will die of a heart attack if that ever happened. Isn't that right, dear?_ They added smugly, clearly referring to the prank they pulled earlier.

Frisk ducked and hid their blushing face away. _I hate you._

_You're the one who's holding my hand right now._

Frisk grumbled again, but refused to let go of the hand. They weren't going to be bullied to do something they didn't want.

"as you say then." Sans shrugged.

"I see that your brother is not exactly pleased with you."

He paused, as did Frisk. They didn't realise Chara had listened to any of the brother's conversations. "yeah, i guess he's not. he thinks i should recalibrate my puzzles often, but if they're not being used on anyone what's the point?"

Chara grimaced then openly glared at the monster. "The point, _Mr Sans_ , is that one must stay diligent to their duty, no matter how benign the task may seem." They lectured to which Frisk had to wince at. They weren't winning any points from Sans this way, for sure. "Small duties are the foundation of a working kingdom: kids must go to school, cleaners must sweep up the dead leaves from the streets. Cut corners here and there and the whole system crumbles. Everyone must do their part, no matter how 'pointless' the task may seem to them. Everyone is counting on _you_ to do your _work_."

Sans stared, his bony white features and permanent grin giving away none of his emotions. "Wow. I guess I can't argue with that." The skeleton shoved his hands in his pocket, his expression unchanging. "Does that mean I should capture both of your souls right here, right now?"

Frisk tightened their grip on Chara's hand in fear, but the monarch ignored their concerns and simply grinned. "I would commend you, should you try."

_Chara!_ The child yelled in shock, then glanced worriedly at Sans who was giving the monarch a piercing look, one which Chara returned in full. Frisk gulped, then closed their eyes, unable to take it any longer. They were certain one of them was going to blow up on the other, and they just wanted to be prepared to go back.

The staring contest seemed to go on for hours, each participant gazing at one another with such intensity one could see the bits of spark flying in the middle.

Thankfully, Sans backed up first, breaking eye contact by ducking his head with a low chuckle. "heh. nah, i don't think i will. as i said, i don't really care about capturing anybody."

"I see." Chara smirked again, somewhat triumphant yet disappointed at the same time.

"what? you disapprove?" It wasn't an accusation, just an observation.

"It's not the matter of if I like it. You have made yourself clear, and I will respect your choice. It is as simple as that."

Sans narrowed his eyes, unconvinced. "... Alright… Welp, you guys should get out of here if you want to make it to Snowdin before sleeping hours. My brother's going to be waiting for me up ahead so I'll catch you guys there."

"You will be waiting ahead of us… _after_ you let us get a head start?" Chara asked, puzzled.

"secret shortcuts." Sans shrugged. "what can i say? i'm lazy."

"So you are." Chara snorted. Frisk yanked at their intertwined hands, giving the monarch an angry glare.

Chara simply gave them a grin that said, 'I'm happy with what I just did'.

"Well, it seems my partner is eager to move ahead, and who am I to deny such request? Good day to you, sir. It's been a pleasure."

"yeah, a real pleasure." Sans grinned, his tone devoid of humour.

Much to Frisk's relief, Chara didn't speak any further and nodded gracefully in a sign of goodbye. The two of them turned and left, leaving the skeleton behind.

Frisk didn't dare look back now, but they knew for a fact that Sans hadn't moved and was staring at them intensely. They bit their lips, wondering how this timeline will now go from here. So many changes in pattern, all caused by Chara's presence as well as their rash and often malicious social skills. It made them nervous, unsure of their actions.

They frowned at Chara who marched ahead in nonchalance. They understood that Chara didn't feel the need to show any respect to Sans, but that didn't mean they were allowed to be openly hostile towards him either. Frisk promised themselves that the monarch was going to get an earful from them later.

_I just hope that I can get them to listen._ They sighed, exasperated. I _just want all of us to be good friends. Is that too much to ask?_

* * *

Sans watched the pair walk off to the distance in silence, unmoving like a statue. The two humans have proven to be 'civil' enough, and despite the taller one's obvious disdain for his behaviour as well as the earlier attempt at his life, he couldn't sense any malice from either of them since then.

Well… not _direct_ malice anyhow.

There was something off about the two that had him slightly on edge, and it wasn't just the fact that they were both human and one or both of them were probably a time traveller. No, there was something else about the pair that made it difficult for him to relax. He had a powerful urge to simply cast his spells and disintegrate the two of them whenever they were talking, which was unusual as he always felt that his arsenals were a touch too violent for his taste. It wasn't just about that Chara kid being rude to him. He has plenty of hecklers in the past. The kid judging him didn't bother him. So what was it about those two that bypassed his logics and made him want to vanquish them so completely and ruthlessly?

He wasn't supposed to use his power of judgement outside of the castle, but he never really cared much for the rules. So he allowed his left eye to glow, and studied the retreating humans for their stats, because you never know. Besides, he found it amusing that most of the time the toughest looking monsters were often the one with the lowest AT and DF. It was hilarious.

His eye traced over the two, the little one first, whom he muttered a small 'huh' at, then to the taller one.

Then, in an instant, his eyes receded into the darkness of his socket like a frightened turtle would into its shell, leaving both sockets completely hollow.

**Frisk**  
**AT 0 DF 0**  
*** Will get hurt by a fly.**

**Chara**  
**AT 99 DF 40**  
*** Something's not right here...**

_o… kay…_ He muttered. _that's… a big number._

His eyes flicked a different colour, a deep dark blue this time, and traced over the taller one again.

Then the moment the spell focused on the target, it popped, like a small firecracker going off in his eye.

The skeleton screamed short, then stumbled about, his hands slammed over his eye socket which was fuming a thin trail of black smoke.

He carefully lifted his hand, and blinked rapidly to test out his vision. Thankfully, aside from the slight fuzziness caused by the smoke, his sight remained intact. He almost sighed in relief, but then quickly realised what had happened. His spell had a… what, a meltdown?

He stood, sweat starting to seep from his forehead as he tried to piece together the information that'd been scattered by the failure. A lot of them were errors and some just a long string of broken text, but he did get to decipher one information out of it all. And that information made his bones rattle with chills.

**Chara**

**LV - Error: NaN**  
**EXP - Error: NaN**  
**HP - Error: NaN**

**AT - 38(99) DF - 40(0)**  
**Weapon - Royal Dagger**  
**Armor - Green Sweater**

**KILLS - 999**

For a while the skeleton didn't move, just standing there, running the info in his mind over and over again.

Then, he snorted. Then laughed. Slowly at first, then gradually growing into a hearty guffaw. He laughed, loud and proud, so hard that his joints rattles and his sides began to hurt.

He had to say, it was the best laugh that he'd had in quite some time.

It eventually died off, and he wiped the small bit of tears that had formed around his eye sockets, his shoulder still shaking in mirth.

"heheheh... yeah, alright..." He chuckled. " ** _hey sans, how's it been?_** oh hey 'life'. it's been surprisingly good, i think. _**has it? then here's some shit for you to deal with. to keep you on your toe, you know?** _ hahaha, fuck you too man. fuck you TOO!"

He kicked at the snow, scattering a spray of white into the air.

He wiped his hand over his face, taking in several deep breaths to calm his ethereal heart.

His eyes washed over with darkness, then flashed in bright blue. A thick blackness swept over the world, and Sans went away with it.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: And there you have it. I question whether or not I should have had the whole gender conversation in there, but I thought it was an opportunity to bring it in since Sans started the topic (that and a lot of you already guessed it correct by referring to Chara as "she" in your reviews). Frisk, on the other hand? You'll have to wait :D**
> 
> **I'll do my best to get the next chapter faster, but I won't promise anything because I do like taking my time to rethink ideas after they're written. It's what gives us our lovely "abandoned ideas" list. Speaking of which...**
> 
> **Ideas abandoned for the chapter: Chara teasing Frisk with a kiss, Chara LIKING Sans' humour, full blown imaginary scene of Charisk wedding in Frisk's head.**
> 
> **And since some people have been asking, here's an omake made from the abandoned idea.**
> 
> * * *
> 
> **Omake (full blown imaginary scene of Charisk wedding in Frisk's head):**
> 
>  
> 
> **Sans** : wow, humans let you marry this young? that's pretty extreme.
> 
> **Frisk** : M...married?
> 
> **(Pink fog transition to imaginary church)**
> 
> **Toriel** : Oh my sweet child, I'm so proud of you. You look so beautiful in that dress.
> 
> **Frisk** : Thanks, mum. I can't believe this is happening.
> 
> **Toriel** : Neither can I. * _sniff._ I'm going to be a mother in law, of my own child. I'm sure it's a criminal offense to marry your sibling, but since you aren't legally my child, I'm sure it's fine. Look, darling, the lovely bride is here.
> 
> **(Frisk turns and sees Chara approach them wearing a black tux with slicked back hair, doves flying about with a pair of Whimsalots marching behind them. Frisk marvels at the scene.)**
> 
> **Frisk** : Wow...
> 
> **(Chara slaps Frisk across the face.)**
> 
> **Frisk** : Ow!
> 
> **Chara** : What the _HELL_ are we doing here?!
> 
> **Frisk** : W-what?
> 
> **Chara** : I said, what the hell are we doing here?! Why are you in a dress? Why aren't _I_ in a dress?
> 
> **Frisk** : A-are you the real Chara?
> 
> **Chara** : Hmph, of course not. I'm part of your imagination.
> 
> **Frisk** : Then how come you're-
> 
> **Chara** : Because you're too vivid with your thoughts, dear. If you try to imagine me, you end up imagining my personality as well. Now get rid of this silly musings. We have work to do. And next time, put _me_ in a dress, alright? Or I'm going to burn the gown off your skin. Then, we'll see if you're happy or not.
> 
> **Frisk** : N-no! That's not fair! These are my thoughts! You have to do what I say!
> 
> **Chara** : **(eyes crackle with magic)** I don't have to do anything, you little brat. NO ONE tells me what to do!
> 
> **(The church erupt in white flames and turns all the medium rare steaks prepared for the feast into well-done, which Frisk really really hate)**
> 
> **Frisk** : Nooooo! Not the steaks! Not the steaks!
> 
> **Chara** : A-hahahaha! A-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
> 
> **(Meanwhile, in real life.)**
> 
> **(Frisk is kneeling on the ground, arms up in the air in despair.)**
> 
> **Frisk** : Nooooooooo-
> 
> **(Sans and Chara share a look)**
> 
> **Sans** : ummm...
> 
> **Chara** : Please do not ask. I hardly understand it myself.
> 
> **Frisk** : -oooooooooo-
> 
> **Sans** : um… okay? so do we just...
> 
> **Frisk** : -oooooooooo-
> 
> **Chara** : Wait? I'm afraid so.
> 
> **Frisk** : -oooooooooo-
> 
> **Sans** : ...welp, i guess i should order a pizza or something.
> 
> **Chara** : Oh, a pizza? How quaint. Did they set up a restaurant around here?
> 
> **Sans** : no. i'm getting it delivered.
> 
> **Chara** : Oh my, a pizza that's delivered to your location? How… incredible.
> 
> **Sans** : … uh-huh. what, you never had pizza delivered to your place before? where the hell have you been since the last… what, forty years?
> 
> **Chara** : Hmph, you have no idea.
> 
> **Frisk** : -ooooooooo! No! Noo! My steaks… *sniff… please… not the steaks...
> 
> * * *
> 
> **Next up: Chara and Frisk meets Papyrus properly. And Sans doesn't like it one bit.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Guess who's back? Guess who's back? ... Wait, is anyone there? Oh cripes, I really shouldn't have delayed this for five bloody months, eh?**
> 
> **I really must apologise for this awful delay. As with many authors on this site, life got in the way and turned me into a lazy yob. I had plenty of opportunities to write, but unfortunately, my head wasn't in the right space. Ideas that I had weren't too exciting for me to really get me to sit down and write, and when it finally came to me, I was being a picky little shite again, scrapping thousands upon thousands of words again and again. Well, better late than never, I say.**
> 
> **I personally don't think this chapter is at its best, but it will never be at the rate I'm going.**
> 
> **Thank you for everyone who commented, subscribed, and bookmarked this story. I'm almost at 400 kudos on this and uhh... It's pretty damn amazing, I must say. Thank you so much for your support and I do hope that you enjoy this chapter as well.**
> 
> **P.S: While I was being a lazy yob over the months, a lovely reader known as "Kamineko" made a comic strip of the scene where Chara reveals that they don't know what a video game is! You can find it in her deviantart page: Just google "Kaminekoshi Chara-and-the-mobile-phone" and it'll most probably be the first result in the list. Thank you so much Kamineko! This is the first time I've had someone draw a fanart of my story and it really got me pushing to get this chapter done!**
> 
> **Now, on with the show~**
> 
> * * *

The two children walked down the empty path as always, making their way towards the designated place they were supposed to meet this 'Papyrus' character Frisk had once so eagerly talked about. Unfortunately, Chara wasn't looking forward to the meeting all that much, not after the second hand encounter they with him and his boisterous voice. They always did hate obnoxiously loud noises, especially from another person, and this was no different. They couldn't imagine anyone with such level of voice having any sort of refinement. If they had had the choice, they'd have skipped this meeting all together.

_Ah, but then the child won't be too pleased now, will they?_ They thought as they eyed the sullen Frisk besides them. _Or does that really matter at this point?_

"Are you cross with me, darling?" The monarch asked, their voice a soft coo. It was the first words they've shared since they parted ways with the skeleton and it struck the air like a train horn.

The child whipped their head to them for a brief moment, their beady little eyes pressing into a narrow glare before whipping away with a loud 'Hmph!'.

Chara smiled, finding the antic terribly adorable.

"Now now, don't be like that." They continued, turning around and blocking the child's path, putting them both to a halt. "It was a harmless comment, a jest much like what that imbecile did to me. It was all in 'good fun'."

"Nothing about what you said to Sans back there was 'fun'." Frisk grumbled, crossing their arms in a huff. "Fun is what you have with everyone else, it makes everyone happy. You? You were just being a jerk!"

"A jerk?" Chara barked with laughter. "Oh you use the _cutest_ word sometimes. I wish I could record you and listen to you speak all day long."

"I-I'm not trying to be cute!" The child yelled despite their blush. "I'm angry! I'm mad at you!"

"And it is simply precious, dear. I'm afraid being angry and being cute isn't a mutually exclusive state for you."

"Well, I don't know what that means, so there!"

"Ah, my apologies. It means that you being angry and being cute doesn't necessarily occur at-"

"I wasn't asking!" Frisk screamed, then stomped their way around the monarch, refusing to meet eyes with them even for a moment, and all Chara did was watch them go with a soft smile and shake their head.

It was official then: The child was mad, a fact a blind man in a dark room could see without much trouble. However, believe it or not, this conversation was going far better than Chara was expecting. From the moment they felt the spark of Frisk's anger through their connection, they had been preparing for a 'punishment', a retribution of a childish scale: They thought they might receive the silent treatment, perhaps some yelling, screaming, and even crying, god knows what they would have done if the child started crying, yet Frisk had went for the typical 'huffy child' route. It was a bad choice, they had to admit. They found it terribly adorable when Frisk crossed their arms or puffed out their cheeks like they had a bead of candy pocketed inside one side of their mouth. Why do they do that, they wondered, laughing. Was it supposed to be threatening? Because all it made Chara want to do was tickle the child and see that little puff whoosh out in a high pitched giggle.

Stepping closer, they thought to poke the child on their face, but restrained themselves long enough to say, "Child, look at me."

The child turned away again with another loud "Hmph!", twisting their body so far they were practically walking sideways.

Chara giggled, wondering if they could make the kid come to a full three sixty if they pushed enough. "You really like that fool, don't you?"

The child turned around, their expression sullen. They sighed, their shoulders drooping as though all the energy was being drained out of them. "Please don't call him that. And yes, I really like him. Of course I do. He's my best friend."

"I thought I was your best friend?" Chara couldn't help teasing.

"Y-you are, but that doesn't mean he's not important too. People can have more than one close friends, like Sans, actually. He's friends with lots of people. I told you right? He's one of Ms Toriel's best friend in the future?"

"Ugh, forgive me if I find that idea simply sickening."

The child's expression turned sour, almost hurt. "Why do you hate him so much? You barely even know him."

The corner of Chara's lips quirked downwards. They didn't much appreciate the tone the child was taking. "I think I know enough."

"No you don't. You barely knew him for an hour."

"First impression is everything, dear. An hour was plenty of time for him to ruin his image to me."

"Well, if that's the case, I can say the same about you too."

The monarch blinked.

They looked at the child with wide eyes and a raised a brow, not quite believing they heard correctly. "I beg your pardon?"

Frisk shot a challenging glare. "Sans wasn't the only one who ruined his first impression on others." They repeated boldly, their arms crossed in a sign of defiance, backed by their steel like resolve.

"I'm sorry, are you accusing me of…?" Chara didn't dare continue, their brow twitching at the mere thought, the sheer nerve of this child to call them, what, _rude_? "I'll have you know, _child_ , that unlike _him,_ my manners were perfect."

"Oh yeah, 'perfect'." Frisk rolled their eyes. "I'm sure where _you're_ from, trying to kill someone the moment you meet is considered 'perfect manner'."

Chara couldn't help but stare. "Are you _sassing_ me?"

Frisk mock gasped. "Sassing? Moi? No, of course not. Trying to stab a person in the chest is totally normal around here too. It's just another way of saying hello. I'm sure _you_ already know, you already did it to me AND Sans."

Chara took a step back, unable believe what they were hearing. The nerve of this child! Speaking to _them_ in such a disrespectful way. Where was it coming from? Where was the tiny adorable puppy of a child that followed them around with their tail wagging wherever they went? Whatever this was, Chara was not taking it. A spark of rebellion must be crushed before it burned down the forest after all.

They stepped up close to the unflinching Frisk and hissed lowly, "If you had half a brain cell in that _cute_ little head of yours, child, you'll realise that my response to the situation was perfectly valid: I was in an unfamiliar environment being confronted by an unknown entity. Reacting warily is a matter of _logic._ It's called being _smart._ "

Frisk stepped back. "Says the person who fell for the old whoopie cushion in the hand trick. Real smart."

"Wha-! You-!" Chara sputtered, their cheeks aflame. "And I suppose you and all your _cleverness_ didn't fall for it then?!"

"Well, n-no, I did."

"Then stop being a whiny brat about it!"

"Yeah? W-well at least _I_ didn't react to a joke like a crazy maniac!"

"A maniac?!" Chara gasped in horror. " _I_ am not the one who was deploying bloody whoopie cushions into a stranger's hand! _That_ is what a maniac does!"

"It was a joke! He was trying to lighten the mood!"

Chara scoffed. "Oh yes, a 'joke'. If I recall, I was not laughing!"

"Just because _you_ didn't find it funny doesn't mean it wasn't one!"

"Really? Strange you should say that, because I didn't see _you_ laughing either."

"Well-!" Frisk seemed to choke on their own word. "That's because…! I mean, he was saying that we were… You know..."

"That we were 'together'?"

The child ducked their beet red face. "Y-yeah, that."

Chara rolled their eyes. "You sure can dish out all these flirtatious comments but can't take them yourself, can you?"

"Well it-! It doesn't matter!" Frisk thrashed their arm in a renewed anger. "You're being unreasonable with Sans! All you know know about him is that he's lazy and slacks off time to time."

Chara scoffed again. "Isn't that enough?"

"Isn't that en-" Frisk stared at them as though they'd lost their goddamn head. "What?! _No_! In what weird world is that enough reason to _hate_ someone?! Are you crazy?!"

Chara's eyes widened at the insult, their blood suddenly aflame. "Do notyell at _me,_ you little _brat!_ "

"No, you poopie head! I'll yell at you if I want!"

Chara's jaw dropped, speechless at the absurdity of being called a… a ' _poopie head_ ', but Frisk wasn't quite done yet.

"Do you seriously hate him just for that? For being lazy? Are you really that stuck up?!"

Chara felt their finger twitch, their lips peeling into an involuntary snarl. "I am _not_ 'stuck up'. I am _not '_ crazy', and I most certainly do not need you accusing me of beingunreasonable! You dare call me any of those things again and I will cut your fingers off and string them up into a necklace, do you hear me?!"

"Oh yeah, there you go. _There_ you go. Of course you threaten me. Of course that's what you do, because you don't know anything else! Do you really think I'm scared of a little pain after what I've been through? I don't care if you cut off my fingers, Chara! In fact, if you're gonna do it, do it! Here! What are you waiting for? Do it! DO IT!"

"Get your bloody hand away from me!"

"Aw, why? Getting performance anxiety?"

Chara gaped, staring at the child as though they'd just grown a second head which they proceeded to chop off and eat. Who was this? Who were they even talking to right now? This fearless, outrageous creature was _not_ the meek child who'd been clinging to them at every other moment for security and comfort. All this bravery, this _stupidity,_ was it all in defense for their so-called 'best friend'? It was an admirable trait, Chara had to acknowledge, and they would have commended them for it had it not been for all this pure, _unyielding_ rage that swept away any sense of appreciation they had.

They pushed away the outstretched hand and glared at the child square in the eyes with enough menace to kill a bull. Blood was rushing in their ear, their heartbeat echoing through their body like tremors of an explosion in the distance. "Do not test me, _human_." They hissed. "You will _not_ like the result."

"Oh, it's _human_ now, is it?" The child scoffed, not the least bit afraid. "I have a name, _Chara!_ Or did you forget because you got your head stuck in all that huge ego of yours?"

"I do NOT have-!" Chara stopped themselves short, took a deep breath as they clenched and unclenched their fist. "No. Enough. I don't have time for this petty argument. I know what I am, and if you insist on being a brainless, clueless _brat_ about it, you can do that on your own." With that, they sauntered ahead, trying to control their rage, keeping their legs from stomping on the ground too hard.

Unfortunately, Frisk had other ideas, and appeared before them in a flash, blocking their path.

"Oh no you don't! You don't walk away from this! You don't get to do that! Stay here and talk!"

Chara felt their entire body ignite, a wave of cold fury that consumed them in an instance. "Do not _dare_ order mearound!I am a _monarch_ and I will be damned if someone like _you_ will stop me from doing what _I_ want!"

"No! You don't _get_ to play your 'I have more power than you' card now! You don't _get_ to play the monarch when you're doing a terrible job at it!"

Chara felt their breath stop short in their throat. Another wave of chilling cold ran down their body, numbing what little self control they had. " _What_ did you just say?"

"Do you really think that this is what rulers do? A _good_ ruler? You can't get angry at every little thing that you find 'not up to your standard', Chara. That's not how it works!"

"Do _not_ assume you know me, you little _fuck!_ I have very good reasons for my actions! Every single one of them!"

The kid had the sheer nerve to _laugh._ " _You_ can't even get over a little joke that you don't like!"

"It's NOT about the JOKE!"

"THEN WHAT IS IT?!" Frisk yelled back. "Please, _tell me!_ Because really?! All I'm seeing right now is just a 'selfish brat', as you might call it, getting full of themselves and doing whatever they want to do and threaten anyone who they don't like! That's not what a good ruler does, Chara. That's what bullies do! That's what _tyrants_ do! You're being a bully! You're being a ty-!"

A loud slap had echoed into air and the forest beyond, and suddenly, Snowdin fell silent.

Chara stared, their eyes wide much like Frisk's, filled with shock. They let out the breath they didn't know they were holding, and pulled their hand back towards their chest, doing their best to ignore the sharp sting on their palm as well as the sick, gut churning horror that filled them from within.

The child looked up at them, their large brown eyes trembling with shimmering tears. They didn't even raise their hand to cover their cheek, leaving the large reddening mark visible to the whole world.

"Okay." They said, not out of anger or hate, but of sorrow and hurt. "So, did you have a good reason for doing that too?"

There were no more words. The child stomped around them and walked away, refusing to meet eyes with them any longer.

Chara did not dare chase after them.

They looked down at their hand, the same hand they used to strike Frisk -to strike a child- and clenched their eyes shut, shielding themselves from the sight.

This... wasn't supposed to happen.

This wasn't what they were planning to do at all. They tried piecing together the events, trying to figure out how it even came to this. They were laughing scantily a minute ago, weren't they? They were having fun with the child who looked so cute with their cheek puffed out, and arms crossed? They were supposed to have resolved the issue with a laugh, with the two of them smiling after talking things out.

_This is not my fault._ They told themselves, much too frantically for their liking. _The child was being unreasonable, stubborn. They weren't seeing it from my point of view. They didn't even try!_

But no matter what they told themselves now, it all sounded like petty excuses, ones that only a foolish kid with half a brain would come up with after getting into trouble with a teacher, one that had a simple, ultimate answer for: _No matter what the child did, they didn't deserve to be struck._

Chara had wanted to talk things out, expected them to do so, they really did. But they may have forgotten one crucial detail about themselves that led to this disaster of a situation: They were still young. They were green. A _child_. No matter how regal and smart they tried to act, they were still an irrational, stubborn, and often quick on their feet rather than their head, _kid_. The only difference between them and Frisk was that they were the elder and had an obligation to be better, something that they clearly failed at.

They turned around, their arms reaching out for Frisk, their mouth already half open to call out, to apologise, to say anything that could make this horrible feeling go away, and then-

"Yo."

-and then they came to an abrupt halt, their eyes meeting with that of a giant, wingless lizard-bird like creature standing not a few meters away from them down the dirt path.

Chara backed up in surprise while the monster dropped their eyes downwards, nervously whisking their eyes left and right, like a bird searching for the next worm to pop out of the earth. The monarch shifted their gaze and found the child standing before the monster, arms stuck tightly by their sides, head ducked to the floor. Even with their back turned towards them, Chara could see the small beads of tears falling to the snow from the child's face.

With a heavy, guilt ridden heart, they approached the two, placing themselves besides the child as always, albeit with a good arm's length distance between them.

"Greetings, sir." They said to the monster, trying their best to appear pleasant despite their soul screaming at them to send them away and make right with the child.

"Uhh, h-hey. W-w-what's up?" The monster said and Chara winced at the terrible stutter. The creature probably had witnessed the horrible interaction between them and the child and was now wishing he could be anywhere else but here.

"Nothing much I believe." Chara answered casually, giving him a once over. The monster was rather large, easily towering over them despite his body mostly consisting of his head and the large snowflake shaped… crown? Chara didn't remember any monster like this back in their time, but he certainly had an intimidating appearance. If he didn't have the cracking voice of a teenager a few years shy of adulthood, and perhaps didn't shuffle about like an amateur tap dancer performing at an audition for the first time, Chara might have actually felt threatened. "Are you alright, Mr…?"

"Oh. Y-yeah, I'm fine. My uhh, my name is S-Snowdrake. It's nnhhuuh, n-nice to meet you."

_Nice to meet you?_

Chara looked down at Frisk whose wet, puffy eyes was looking up at the monster with a small, confused frown.

_What's wrong?_ The monarch asked softly, tentatively, as though they were walking on a carton of eggs.

The child looked at them for a brief moment before ducking their head again. _I-I don't know._ They answered, uncertainty marring their tone. _I've never heard him say that phrase properly._

_He doesn't say 'Nice to meet you'_ properly _? How does he do that?_ Chara couldn't help but ask.

_He... always says, 'Ice to meet you' instead._

Chara winced at the pun but didn't push it further. They couldn't bare the awkward atmosphere any longer anyhow. They turned back to the monster whose nervous fidgeting seemed to have gotten worse, his restless feet shuffling the snow away until they could see the dirt ground. Chara sympathised with the creature, both of them wishing that they could just disappear and forget about this whole incident. They opened their mouth to dismiss him, to free this creature from this torturous cage of a social obligation and allow him to go on his merry way, but then they noticed the way his eyes moved. His icy blue eyes, they were shifting sideways towards the woods, an action that could have been mistaken as a simple, nervous fidgeting of an awkward party, but he looked at that one specific spot in the woods one too many times, as if expecting a predator to jump out of it at any moment.

Chara was suddenly getting a sense that this meeting was not as random as they might have initially thought.

_Child, get behind me, quickl-_

There was a loud crack, a sound that was akin to two rocks slamming into each other.

Their was a brief moment, a _very_ brief moment of silence before a small, crumpling thud echoed into the forest.

Wide red eyes turned to the ground besides them, and Chara suddenly felt their whole body freeze, their heart explode with deadly cold as they saw the child lying there in the snow, their eyes closed, a thin line of blood starting to trail down from their scalp and down to the side of their face.

… _Child?_

That was the only thought that Chara had time to voice before something heavy slammed into them from the front, throwing them to the ground and knocking the wind out of them. They grunted as their back met the freezing snow, and before they could even think to get up, three deadly talons crushed into the ground around them, pressing them back down to the snow and securing them in place in a makeshift prison.

"Y-yo! Why did you go for the small one, man?! I told you to get the tall one first!" They heard Snowdrake yell.

"Well, I'm sorry I'm not as tall as you! I can only swing this thing high enough for the small one, okay?!" Another, equally frantic voice answered.

Chara turned their head to their side where they last saw the child fall and saw instantly a small humanoid monster with a hat made of ice, as tall as the wearer himself, standing over Frisk's body. In his stubby, circular hands was a large club made of bluish white ice. On the thick end of it, Chara could see a smudge of red blood smeared over it.

_Child?_ They called out again, their chest beating so hard that they could barely concentrate on listening into their connection for a response. _Child?!_

Frisk was silent, the link between their soul cold as the ice they now lay on.

Something inside Chara snapped, and they felt their entire body physically ignite with rage.

"Whoa!" Snowdrake yelled as he jumped off them. "D-dude! This human's on fire!"

His friend looked at the human and indeed found them on fire, their whole body burning in pure white flames -Magical flames in fact- and if he wasn't wrong, there was a pair of red magic blade growing out of their hands.

"Shit!" He cursed. "D-drakes! Ice 'em! I'm gonna finish the job on the smaller one first!"

Chara's whole body exploded again, their flames jumping out and doubling in size and intensity. "GET YOUR HANDS OFF THEM!" They boomed, a half human, half beast like shriek that seemed to shake the very ground under their feet.

"Oh shit!" Snowdrake hopped back. "Over here you crazy bastard!"

Chara whipped their head to him just in time to see a set of frozen scales flying towards them like shurikens. They swung their arm, sending their flames forth to engulf the projectiles. The two magic met in an uneven match, a David to a Goliath. The scales melted and then vaporised under the heat, not even a single charred bit left behind.

Snowdrake took a fearful step back, his mouth hung open with no strength to close back up.

Chara might have laughed smugly at his reaction, but did not spare the time for such petty deed. No longer under threat, they focused back onto the child whose unconscious body the monster with the hat was hovering his hands over. As the stubby hands ran over and around the child, their limbs slowly started to get encased in crystal like ice.

Chara roared like a feral beast, the fire inside, as well as outside them burning wild. They shot off to a sprint, their eyes focused on the prey, their hands ready at their sides with magic blades crackling at the air in search for something to cut.

"C-caps! Look out!" Snowdrake yelled.

"Oh shit oh shit!" The monster with the hat echoed.

Chara felt a smile grow on their lips despite the situation, relishing the fear they heard in the monsters' voice. It was only right. They were trying to take something that was not theirs. They were trying to steal from a member of the Royal House, and it was only correct that they be taught a lesson in respect.

Nobody was allowed to touch the child.

Nobody was allowed to hurt the child.

Nobody except them.

Chara focused their fire into their palm, ready to give this ice hat wearing creature a fist full of it right across their face. A ball of flame the size of a small boulder formed around their hand.

And at that moment, something large, heavy and solid smashed into their gut like a freight train, halting them in their place as though they had just ran into a solid metal fence.

"Hurk-!" They gasped, doubling over. Their flame exploding away as their rage was erased, replaced by sheer pain and shock.

They went down on their knee, clutching at their midsection with both arms. Trembling, they held their head up just enough to see a very stout, very flat looking monster with straw thin limbs staring right back at them with an unusually bored expression. The monster snorted, took a moment to pick at his nose and flicked the booger that followed his finger out to the side.

"Man, you guys really suck at this shit." He drawled. "Why do you even try?"

Without another word, the monster smashed Chara across the side of their head.

Chara's world shook with a loud crack, every branch of their nerve exploding with complete numbness as they lost all bodily functions. Their legs gave out, and they crumpled into the snow.

On their way down, their blood red eyes were glued to the child, stiff and unmoving in this freezing cold.

_I should put a blanket on them._ They thought as they fell. _They'll catch a cold, and it'll probably go on for the whole week. That'll be problematic, won't it? I can't have them in so much pain for so long. They'll probably cough and whine the whole way through, just like Asriel. How annoying. I wonder if they like potato soup? Do they have any allergies? Do they-_

Their body hit the ground, and still, their eyes watched. They watched as the trio of monsters slowly approached them, leaving the child in the cold, alone and helpless.

_Don't you touch them, you bastards._ They tried to say, but even in their mind, the words were weak, barely coherent. _I'll kill you. Don't touch them… Don't… touch..._

The last bit of strength they were holding on to snapped, their entire consciousness falling apart under it.

Their eyes rolled back into their skull, and their world was consumed in black as their mind fell into oblivion.

* * *

There was a stunned silence from the trio (well, not much in Jerry's case. He was just playing with his phone), each staring at the two unconscious humans with wide eyes.

"H-h-holy shit!" Snowdrake broke the silence with a joyous shout. "W-we did it, dudes! We got the last soul! We saved the day! We're heroes! _Heroes!_ "

"H-Hell yeah, boys!" Ice Cap forced a smirk despite the nervous sweat dripping down his face. "Let's freeze the little one completely and get them to the King before anyone finds out! We're gonna be rich! We're gonna be on the next Mettatton show! How awesome is that?!"

"Guys, what about my ride home?"

"Shut up Jerry! You don't want to be rich and famous, that's your problem!" Ice Cap growled back, using his magic to finish the ice prison he'd been making for the little human. Without the other human to disturb him, the process was over in a minute and the teens were soon looking at a large ice block with a small sleeping human in the middle. "Okay, Drakes, you got the most muscle between us. Carry this thing, will you?"

The teen stepped up to do as was told before he took a brief glance to the side. "Hey, w-what about the other human? Shouldn't we take them too?"

At his friend's prompting, Ice Cap turned his head to the taller human for an instant before whipping away from the bloody sight with a wince. "N-No way, dude. Did you see what that thing could do? I'm not sticking around for them to wake up. Besides, they're too big to carry and we only need one soul to get rid of the barrier. Just take their bag. Maybe they have something good on them."

"W-won't they die like this?"

Ice Cap stared at Snowdrake for a moment. "W-what? And we should care? They're humans Drakes. They're the enemy. Who cares if one of them d… I mean, like, get _offed_ , right?" He ended with a smirk. Neither he or Snowdrake had the gut to point out the fact that it appeared more fake than two kids trying to pass off as an adult using a trench coat and shades.

"R-right."

With that, Snowdrake picked up the little frozen human with his beak and the trio ran off into the woods, leaving Chara behind in the deadly cold. A new layer of snow began falling on Snowdin, slowly burying the human and covering them away from the world.

* * *

#  **Chapter 9**

"SANS! SAAAAAANS! WHERE ON EARTH DID YOU GO?! YOU'RE SLACKING OFF AGAIN AREN'T YOU?! I SWEAR I WILL TAKE AWAY YOUR ALLOWANCE IF THIS CONTINUES! NOT THAT I GIVE YOU ANY BUT IF I EVER DID CONSIDER, THIS WILL MAKE ME THINK OTHERWISE!"

Nothing.

Papyrus grumbled and stomped his feet on the snow with growing frustration. He'd been so sure that this was going to be the day: The day that he was going to stick with Sans the whole time, the day that he'd get his brother to stay focused on his task, the day that his brother was going to get some -at least _some-_ work actually, _legitimately_ done. But no. One glance away and _poof_ , Sans was gone again, like a rabbit into a magician's hat (Or was that _out_ of the magician's hat? He was too worked up to care). It was infuriating. He didn't even know how he'd disappeared in the first place. They were standing in the middle of a vast plain of snow! Unless he learned how to borrow into the ground in a blink of an eye, what Sans did was theoretically impossible.

But then again, his brother often proved to be too lazy to follow any rules properly, especially the rules of reality.

Papyrus sighed, feeling his whole body drain with it. He worried for his brother's future, he truly did. What will Sans do without such a fantastic brother taking care him in his life? Become a D rank stand up comedian telling cheap jokes at bars during day time? Laze about on the couch until his bones fuse together with the cushions? The mere thought of it gave him chills.

No. That wasn't going to happen. Not on his watch. No brother of the Great Papyrus was going to end up like that. No siree.

With his sense of duty emboldened, Papyrus yelled for Sans once more, using his gloved hands as a makeshift megaphone. Yet despite his efforts, it proved to be about as effective as all of his previous attempts, that is to say not at all. He might as well have been asking for a human to come out of the trees. They were both about as likely to happen. Perhaps it was time to call for a backup.

"SAANS!" He called out for the last time. "I'M GOING TO CALL GRILLBY IF YOU DON'T COME OUT IN TEN SECONDS! I'LL TELL HIM NOT TO GIVE YOU ANY FRIES FOR THE NEXT WEEK! HOW WILL YOU ENJOY YOUR BOTTLE OF KETCHUP THEN, HUH?! IT'LL SUCK BIG TIME!"

Nothing.

Huffing, he pulled out his phone from his pocket.

"OKAAAY! HERE I GO!" He hovered his gloved index over the dial. "OOONE! TWOOOO! THRRRRrrr..."

He trailed off, his arms lowering in confusion as he stared at the path ahead where something had caught his attention. He squinted his eyes, leaned his head forward, even went as far as to shield his gaze from the invisible sun above. He then backed up and shook his head.

"WHAT THE DEVIL?" He said to himself.

There, in the distance up the road ahead: There was a fire, or at least what he thought was a fire, only that it was coloured in what he could only describe as a very deep cherry red.

Now, it wasn't unusual for a family of monsters to come hiking in the Snowdin forest and stoke a little fire to warm themselves and cook marshmallows, but what made this particular scene out of the norm was that: One, there were no monsters around to be seen; Two, the fire was burning in the _middle_ of the footpath; And three, the fire was coloured _cherry red._ As delicious as that sounds, he was pretty sure that a cherry red flame weren't exactly normal, or too healthy for the environment.

Glancing left and right, he quickly surveyed the surrounding woods for any sign of life, and when he found none he began making his way up the road, both to examine this strange flame up close and to extinguish the hazard if it proved to be dangerous to the forest.

Then, he came to an abrupt halt when the fire sort of... stood _up_.

Papyrus remained still, not really knowing what the correct reaction should be. _HUH._ He thought. _OKAY. SO… THIS IS HAPPENING._

The fire, it didn't stand in a conventional 'on its legs' sort of way. No, it was more like it grew really tall, like a bear before an unknown assailant, as though it was trying to appear threatening. One might have thought that the fire just got more intense as he approached, and though that in itself would be something to question, from where he was standing Papyrus was pretty sure the fire had gotten thinner as it 'stood' too, and it was kind of… hunching over. He imagined this was what Napstablook would look like if someone set him on fire. And got rid of his eyes and mouth.

The skeleton continued to play the role of a mannequin, observing the featureless flame and wondering if his mind was playing tricks on him. Because despite its lack of eyes, he got the distinct feeling that it was somehow... staring _back_ at him.

After several seconds of unmoving observation, Papyrus raised his hand to rub his chin, a habit of his whenever he contemplated his next move.

And the moment he did, the fire flinched back, as though in fright.

Papyrus stopped too, realising that, yes, despite its lack of distinct features, the flame before him was sentient, and was smart enough to be wary of a sudden movement when it saw (or sensed) one.

_OKAY?_ He hummed, coming to a decision. He wasn't hostile and didn't mean the fire any harm, so what better way to communicate this fact by just saying it out loud? "HELLO, WEIRD FLAME PERSON! I DON'T THINK I'VE EVER SEEN A MONSTER LIKE YOU BEF-"

The flame shrieked at him, a noise so loud and sharp it was like listening to someone scratching their nail on a blackboard while holding a megaphone at the same time. Papyrus flinched back and pressed his eyes shut, feeling the inside of his skull literally vibrate to the ear bleeding sound.

There was a moment of stunned silence that ensued, one Papyrus tentatively breached by peeking through his squinted eyes. Unexpectedly, he saw the flame fold into a crawl on the ground, then grow smaller and smaller like a stove fire being gradually turned off.

"WAIT-!" Papyrus raised his hand, as though he could somehow grab and halt the fire from running away, but by the time he realised what was happening, the fire was gone, leaving not a single ember in its path. It was as though it was never there, and had he not seen otherwise Papyrus might have just believed that too.

"OH MY GOD." He suddenly gasped out loud, his eyes widening at the sight before him.

The fire had died down to nothing, but instead of the cold dirt ground that anyone would expect to see under it, there appeared a little… A little...

_Something_.

A person, if he had to guess but it was a very strange looking one if it was: A bipedal humanoid with pale white skin and thick brown fur on top. It was like a small skeleton, only with flesh and fur, creating this odd amalgamation of a bone type monster and a beast type monster. Papyrus imagined that he would look like this if he chose to dress up as a monkey in a costume party (which sounded like the most spectacular idea which needed to be put to reality as soon as possible but he digressed).

He did vaguely recall that this was what an average human looked like in those pretty picture books Sans borrowed from Dr Alphys, but this couldn't possibly be a human: they were much too small! And they were wearing a striped top too, meaning that they were a kid, _not_ a human. He knew the difference.

He hummed again, rubbing his chin as he studied the creature with a touch wariness. The fire monster hadn't returned and didn't seem like it will for a while, so he was guessing that it was safe to approach. He didn't want to be rude by saying it out loud but, to be honest, that shrieking fire gave him the creeps, goosebumps on his invisible flesh. Had he not been the official guard stationed to protect these woods, he might have just hung his hat and gone home.

"EXCUSE ME LITTLE SKELETON WITH FLESH! ARE YOU AWAKE?!" He shouted at the top of his voice, not wanting to startle the new creature with his presence by approaching so suddenly.

Despite the ten second opportunity he provided, he didn't get an answer. The creature was unconscious. Were they sleeping? He couldn't imagine anyone willing to take a nap in the middle of this sub-zero environment. The creature's head was doused in dried ketchup too. That had to be uncomfortable to some degree.

Papyrus had no idea what this thing was, but it appeared to be in some sort of trouble, and as a fellow humanoid with a skeletal structure of his own (a very handsome one at that if he had to say so himself) he felt compelled to help out.

He approached the creature and knelt down besides them. After a brief study, he rolled them over, and attempted to get his arms around them so that he could pick them up and transport them to his guard station.

And the moment he did so, the creature's eyes shot wide and they leapt up at him like a wild tiger, grabbing his outreached arms as leverage to pull up and grab him by the neck.

Instantly, Papyrus' combat training kicked in like second nature.

His gloved hands flew up and caught the offending limb by the wrist before it could reach their target, but in the same instant a deep red magic bubbled forth from the small hand and-

"NYEH?!" He yelped as the magic shot out in a form of a blade, aimed straight for his neck.

Luckily for him, it stopped an inch short, though that didn't stop it from trying to stretch towards him, twisting left and right like a malleable tentacle to slice apart whatever it could reach. It was like the magic had a life of its own, burning with an urge to cut.

"UMM!" Papyrus yelled, trying to fight off this kid whose deep rose eyes were pinned on him like a tac on a board made of soft cork. For their size, they were surprisingly strong and Papyrus was impressed to find that for a brief moment, the creature was pushing him back. "EXCUSE ME! I KNOW THIS MIGHT -WHOA!-" He dodged a sideway swipe. "-MIGHT BE A BAD TIME! BUT CAN-!" Dodge. "WE-!" Dodge. "TALK-!" Dodge. "THIS OUT?!"

The creature let out an ear piercing shriek.

"OKAY? SO DOES THAT MEAN 'YES'?!"

With a roar, the kid's strength seemed to double, their arms pressing against the skeleton with crushing intensity. Realising the trouble he was in, Papyrus changed his tactics and drew every last bit of his strength to throw the kid off and onto the ground. He then used the moment after to jump on them, pulled their arms up above their head with one swift movement and secure them in a hold. He almost sighed in relief, but the creature continued kicking and twisting their body in all sorts of ways, howling like a feral beast.

"NYEH! STAY STILL, YOU'LL HURT YOURSELF LIKE THAT!" He warned with concern, doing his best to press and hold them down in place.

"Get off of me!" The creature roared at him, which made him pause in shock. He didn't think they were capable of speech, just feral shrieking and growling. "Get off! I'll kill you! I'll kill all you cockless bastards!"

"HEY NOW, THAT IS NOT A VERY NICE THING TO SAY!"

" _FUCK YOU!"_

"WELL, I CAN SEE _SOMEBODY_ WOKE UP ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE _ACK_!"

Papyrus rolled to his side, his hands clutching at his lower spine where the kid had kicked him. He hated it when people did that. He was wearing an armour, so why did they insist on attacking him in places where the armour _didn't_ protect him? It was awfullyrude.

Swallowing the pulsing ache running down his whole body, he pushed himself up to a crawl, then jumped up into his battle stance with a loud 'Hi-yah!'. He expected the creature to rush him again, knife, teeth and all, but to his surprise, they were actually running away from him with all their might, stumbling and collapsing to their knee every second step.

"Child?!" They suddenly yelled into the air, jolting Papyrus who thought for a moment that he was being shrieked at again. They fell on all fours as their wobbly knees gave out once more, and like all the other times prior, they crawled to a stand again, continuing to scream for this 'child' of theirs, each cry more desperate than the last, like the caw of a mother bird looking for its lost chick.

Tentatively, Papyrus lowered his battle pose, feeling that he was no longer the creature's focus in this situation, if he ever was in the first place.

"UMM?" He voiced, not knowing what to say, but still wanting to catch their attention.

Unfortunately for him, it worked a touch too well, and the creature whipped around, their hooded red eyes glaring murder at him. He felt the urge to step back, which was only amplified when the kid marched up to him like a predator out for blood. Their hand was aglow again with deep red magic, forming a magic blade that dripped like melting chocolate. He raised his hands, hoping that the universal sign of peace may possibly calm the creature down.

" _You._ " They hissed, pointing the tip of their blade up to his chest.

"YES?" Papyrus echoed, his back straight.

"You… Where are they?"

He quirked his hairless brow and shifted his eyes left and right. "Uhh, where's who?"

The creature's face ignited like a molotov. "The _child!_ The little one! Where are they?!"

"I'M... AFRAID I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOOOU-NYEH HEH! OKAY THAT'S A BIT CLOSE!"

"Don't you lie to me, sir. Don't you _fucking_ lie to _me_!" The creature spat, the tip of their blade tickling the outer layer of the skeleton's neck. "You know where they are. I _know_ you do! Where are they? Where did you take them?! Tell me RIGHT THIS SECOND!"

"HO BOY. OKAY. LET'S ALL JUST…" He took a deep breath. "CALM DOWN FOR A BIT, OKAY? I THINK THAT THERE'S BEEN A BIT OF A MISUNDERSTANDING HERE AND WE SHOULD ALL USE A MOMENT TO-" Small hand snaked out and pulled him by his scarf, forcing him to bend forward until he was at an eye level. "OH. H-HELLO." The skeleton jittered, staring into the blood red orbs that made him feel like he was in an smelting oven he needed to get out of, like, _right now_.

"Greetings." The creature spat with venom, murder in their tone. "Forgive me for being presumptuous but do you think I'm a fool?"

"IS THAT... IS THAT A TRICK QUESTION?"

"There's no need to play dumb, sir. I already know you're one of them. You just tried to kidnap me, remember? Before I woke?"

"I DID?" Papyrus blinked. "OH. OH! I SEE WHAT YOU MEAN! NYEH HEH HEH! NO, YOU GOT THIS ALL WRONG! THIS IS ALL JUST A BIG MISUNDERSTANDING!"

"Oh, is it now?" Glowing red eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"THAT'S RIGHT! I WASN'T TRYING TO KIDNAP YOU! I WAS JUST TRYING TO TAKE YOU AWAY TO MY HOME WHILE YOU WERE UNCONSCIOUS!"

The creature's glare was so sharp and piercing it could have skewered a whole pig.

"UHH! WAIT, NO! I MEAN: TO HELP! I WAS TRYING TO TAKE YOU HOME TO HELP YOU RECOVER!" The glare continued, a look so intense Papyrus wished he could throw himself off a cliff just to avoid it. "UMM, OKAY, MAYBE I SHOULD HAVE TAKEN YOU TO A DOCTOR INSTEAD? I'M SORRY?"

There was a moment of pause. Then, to his immense relief, the creature smiled and, to his immense horror, started giggling, a sharp, tittering noise on the verge of insanity. Left with not much else to do, Papyrus began to laugh along, slowly and uneasily, trying his best to not let his discomfort show. He had to admit: it was a lot easier said than done.

"You." The creature said between their snickering. "You are a funny one, sir. You are a very, _very_ funny person."

Papyrus didn't know what to say to that. "TH… THANK YOU?"

"Shut the fuckup."

He snapped his jaw shut.

The murderous look was back, glowing red eyes colder than the snow beneath their feet. "Do you think this is a joke?" The creature hissed.

"N.. NO?"

"Do you think just because I dedicate my life to protecting your kind that I will show lenience to treason? You dare lie to me? You dare _lie_ to _me_?!"

Papyrus jittered again nervously. "UMM, YOU KNOW, I CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL LIKE I'M MISSING SOME... _CONTEXT_ HERE."

"Oh really?" The creature giggled again, their lips curling into a twisted smile. "Then perhaps I can provide with you some: You better answer my questions properly from now on or I'll wring your _fucking_ neck. How's that?"

"NYEH-HEH. OKAY, PERFECTLY CLEAR, THANK YOU." Papyrus said in cold sweat. Talking to this kid was like trying to talk to a time bomb with a broken clock display. He had no clue when they were going to go off.

"Great. Now," The creature pulled him closer, breathing into his ear like a snake to a rat before it devouring the cretin whole. "Where is the child?"

Papyrus chose to be truthful. "I THINK I WANT TO SAY I DO KNOW, BUT UHH… I SORT OF… DON'T."

"Okay." The creature nodded. "Where is the child?"

"I…" Papyrus frowned. "I DON'T KNOW?"

"Where. Is. The child?"

"I DON'T- WAIT, CAN WE SWITCH SIDES? I THINK YOU MIGHT HAVE A HEARING PROBLEM ON THIS EAR."

The creature laughed again, leaning their head on his shoulder while pressing the blade to his throat to a point where he could feel the magic dig into the bone, just a touch. "Okay. Alright. Let's change the question then: Where are your accomplices?"

"ACCOMPLICES? LIKE MY CO-WORKERS?"

"No. Not your _FUCKING_ CO-WORKERS, YOU _THICK FUCK!_ " The red blade burned bright, and Papyrus soon found its tip being held right between his eyes. "Where are those monsters?! Tell me where those little twits who had the _nerve_ to assault me are _right now_ before I carve out your useless head!"

Papyrus looked at them in shock and horror. "YOU WERE ASSAULTED?!"

"I-!" The creature blinked. "I beg your pardon?"

"OH NO NO NO NO!" He continued, his mind racing at this heinous information, the threat to his life completely forgotten. "THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE! AN ASSAULT! UNDER MY WATCH?! DID YOU SEE WHO IT WAS?"

"What does that-? Enough! Do _not_ play this game with me! You know well as I that it was that bird monster! That 'Snow drake', and his pillocks of a friend!"

"SNOWDRAKE?" He echoed. "I KNOW THAT KID! HE RAN AWAY FROM HIS HOME AND HAS BEEN MISSING FOR DAYS! HIS DAD'S BEEN WORRIED SICK!"

"His dad's been...? _What?!_ "

"YES! THIS IS GREAT NEWS! -Well, not necessary about the part where you got assaulted by him- BUT STILL, I KNOW WHERE HE IS NOW! YOU, CRAZY LITTLE SKELETON WITH FLESH, HAVE MADE A FATHER VERY HAPPY TODAY!"

The creature fell silent, their mouth gaping as they stared in an odd mix of anger and confusion. "... What in god's bloody name are you on about?!"

"MY JOB OF COURSE!" He said with pride. "AS A GUARD STATIONED HERE IN SNOWDIN FOREST, I PUT IT ONTO MYSELF TO HELP OUT ANY AND EVERY CITIZEN OF HIS MAJESTY THE KING! SNOWDRAKE'S DAD ASKED ME TO LOOK FOR HIS KID WHEN HE WENT MISSING! GIVEN HOW THEY'RE A ICE ORIENTED MONSTERS, HE PROBABLY GUESSED THE KID WILL STAY IN THE FOREST. AND I GUESS HE WAS RIGHT! AND YOU JUST HAD A HAND IN IT AND UHH… THAT... WASN'T WHAT YOU WERE ASKING, WAS IT?"

The creature was silent again, their eyes staring at him so hard he worried that it might just pierce his bones.

Then something in their expression changed, their look of anger and confusion melting into one of sudden recognition. Then as quickly as it did, it changed once more, into that of chilling realisation as they looked at the skeleton, _truly_ looked at him, for the first time.

"You…" Finally they spoke, their previous rage and bout of insanity completely drained from their saucer like eyes. "You are Papyrus."

The skeleton blinked, and turned his head to give a quick survey of his surroundings. He got the feeling that he should be finding a candid camera of sort. "UHH, DO I KNOW YOU?" He asked, scratching his head.

The creature didn't answer, their eyes wide, jaw slack, almost in a daze.

Without warning, the blade held by his throat vanished and the hand gripping onto his scarf loosened.

He stumbled back, putting a few steps of distance between the two of them the moment he was free. Though, as glad as he was to be out of immediate danger of being beheaded, he couldn't help but scratch his head again as he watched the creature just… trudge away from him, after all they've done so far, all that threatening and shouting. Was it something that he said?

Whatever happened, none of the menace or the insanity remained. The kid dragged their feet with each step, slowly, tiredly, as though the weight of the world had fallen on them. If he hadn't experienced it first hand to be otherwise, Papyrus might have thought they were just a normal kid in need of a dire help.

Or maybe that's what they were: a kid in need of a dire help. They just weren't a _normal_ kid that's all.

He twiddled his fingers nervously, turning his head back and forth between the creature and the path behind him, the one leading back to his station and his home, back to safety, normalcy. After several moments of switching side, he came to the hard decision. Sighing out loud, he began tailing the creature.

"UMM, ARE YOU OKAY?" He asked as he caught up. "YOU'RE NOT HURT, ARE YOU?"

The creature stumbled, nearly collapsing onto the nearby tree. In a jerky motion, they lifted their hand to the side of their head, and when they pulled back, their fingers came sticky with blackish red ketchup. They turned around halfway, their exhausted red eyes barely able to focus on him.

"You." They said, almost rasped. "How did you find me?"

"ME? OH! WELL, I WAS JUST WALKING AROUND HERE, DOING A PATROL LIKE USUAL, looking for my lazybone brother, WHEN I SORT OF JUST… _FOUND_ YOU! LYING THERE IN THE SNOW! STRANGE HUH?"

The creature took a moment to digest the words. "Found me. Alone?"

Papyrus thought back to the fire monster that shrieked at him, but that thing was gone by the time he realised this creature was also there, so technically he _did_ find them alone, and to say otherwise would be quite misleading. "I GUESS YOU CAN SAY THAT, YES!"

Another pause, then the red eyes dropped to the snowy ground, seemingly studying the path for… something. Some clue of sort. Then they stopped, their whole body filled with heavy disappointment. "I… I see."

A cold breeze swept by, causing the forest to fall into a chorus of clicking branches.

The creature was still, leaving Papyrus to wait awkwardly like guests at a dinner party where everybody is too polite to take last piece of tart. He didn't quite understand what was going on, but the kid appeared distraught about something, devastated really. He wondered if it had to do with this 'child' that they were screaming for before. A friend of theirs, if his deductions were correct, a friend that they'd lost and wanted back quite badly.

The creature lifted their hand to their head again, but unlike the last time, their palm began to flicker with the warm yellow glow of a basic healing spell, a sight that put Papyrus somewhat at ease. Healing spells could only be used by monsters with the most compassionate of souls, meaning that this creature couldn't be all _that_ bad. Maybe they were doing and saying all those bad things because they were just scared, as children often are when alone with strangers.

As he watched, the spell fizzled out like a busted light bulb as soon as it got strong enough to be effective. The creature growled and tried again, only to end up with the same result.

"NEED SOME HELP?" He decided to ask.

"No. I just… give me a…" The magic grew, then flickered off once more. The creature growled again, much louder than before, yet did not give up. They tried, failed, tried, then failed. The cycle continued, an everlasting loop of attempt and failure that just seemed to feed onto the creature's dark mood. Then after the ninth attempt, the creature had enough. They slammed their fist against a tree.

"Fuck." They growled, then punched the tree again. " _Fuck!"_

"UHH…" Papyrus winced as the kid started a new cycle: one where they smashed their bare fist at the tree, over and over.

As the pommeling continued, the blows became harsher and faster, each strike followed by a stream of profanities that he dared not repeat. And then, it all came to a halt when there was a loud crack, one that definitely did not sound like the tree bark snapping off. The kid screamed, clutching their fist close to their abdomen.

"A-ARE YOU OKAY?" Papyrus asked almost automatically, and immediately regretted it when the kid's blood red eyed snapped onto him again, their gaze piercing like the sharpest arrow.

"I am _punching_ a dead tree with my barefist, sir." They hissed with ragged breath. "My head is bleeding, my hand is broken, so let me ask _you_ : Do I _look_ like I'm okay? Do I look like I'm _FUCKING_ OKAY?!"

"ER… NO?"

"THEN STOP ASKING ME STUPID QUESTIONS!"

Papyrus took a half step back, worried that the creature might jump on them again with their knife. The anger on their face was beyond intense: It was suffocating, their skin becoming so red it nearly matched their eyes. He didn't think he'd seen anyone look so hateful before in his life, so loathing and just… _awful_.

But then it was all gone.

The furious scowl fell apart like a house of card under a gentle breeze, and though the kid's face was still scrunched up, the emotion behind it was nothing like what it was before. The hate broke down, their anger cooled, replaced by sorrow, harsh despair, and pain.

It was obvious that they were trying to hold back, but their quivering lips, their tear glossing eyes could not be controlled so easily.

The first sob came out suddenly, short but loud, and once it was out, the floodgate opened along with it. Before long, soft wails filled the wordless air, quiet sobs so full of regret and unspent emotions, it turned the already cold atmosphere that much more chilling, more lonesome.

The creature cried in the snow, alone and uncared for.

Papyrus blinked, the change in the mood too jarring for him to process. _WHAT JUST HAPPENED?_ He couldn't help but ask.

He saw the creature now, a child whose head barely came up to his neck, a kid who appeared so small and fragile, he wondered how he'd been so intimidated by them until now, how he'd been so scared when they were clearly so much more frightened? For the first time in awhile, he felt guilty. He felt that due to his fear, he did not show the compassion that this kid sorely needed. He didn't even realise that they needed it.

He had no idea what was going on with them but one thing was for certain: As a proud guard of Snowdin and Future Royal Guard of his majesty the King, he could not let this go on. He could not let this stand.

He approached the creature with open arms, his heart filled with a sense of duty, of sympathy. No one should be crying alone, especially not a little-

Oh look, the blade was back on his throat.

" _What_ do you think you're doing?" He heard the kid hiss, and looked down to find their puffy wet eyes glaring daggers at him besides the literal dagger they were holding up.

"UHH… I'M… GIVING YOU A HUG?" He answered haltingly, wondering if being truthful will get him deeper into trouble.

The kid narrowed their eyes, but didn't aggress any further. " _Why?_ "

"HUG IS A GOOD CURE FOR CRYING! AT LEAST, SO I HEARD."

"Well I appreciate your concern, but please, keep it to yourself." They said as they tucked their knife away. "I have very little need for it."

"B-BUT WHAT ABOUT YOUR TEARS?"

"It's out of me now. I've handled it." They hastily brushed away their tears as if to emphasise their point.

Papyrus frowned but didn't retort, not wanting to give them more reasons to be upset. Crying for barely five seconds seemed unlikely to handle anything, much less what they seemed to be going through. The creature kept on wiping at their eyes, which hadn't quite stopped leaking as they'd probably hoped. They began using both of their hands in frustration before they hit the wrong part of their broken hand and let out a sharp cry.

"Damn it!" They gripped at their wrist.

Papyrus was besides them in a flash. "LET ME TAKE A LOOK AT THAT."

"For what purpose?" They growled, pulling away. "Will you please just leave? I am no longer holding you hostage. You have no reason to stay."

"WELL, ACTUALLY, THIS PART OF THE FOREST FALLS UNDER MY JURISDICTION, SO EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS HERE IS KIND OF MY BUSINESS!"

"Then I free you of your obligation. Please just… Leave me be."

"SORRY, I DON'T THINK I CAN DO THAT EITHER! I CAN'T LEAVE A CRYING KID ON THEIR OWN! AS AN ADULT OF US TWO, IT IS MY DUTY TO HELP YOU OUT!"

"That's… _ridiculous_. I've threatened your life. I've held you at knife point and now you wish to help me?"

He shrugged. "I'M PRETTY SURE YOU HAD A GOOD REASON FOR IT."

"A good reason? A good _reason?_ " They said in disbelief, their tired, grumpy voice rising again. "How can you even think that? Have you _not_ seen what I tried to do? Are you so thick headed that you can't even grasp what I am?!"

Papyrus quirked his hairless brow. "YOU MEAN A LITTLE SKELETON WITH FLESH?"

"NO! I'M A HORRIBLE _FUCKING_ PERSON!"

Papyrus flinched back and raised both his hands in a calming gesture. "WHOA, OKAY. THAT'S PRETTY HARSH DON'T YOU THINK?"

"No, I don't!" They roared at him, their tears rising again. "In fact, if I'm honest I believe I'm not being harsh enough! I'm a mental case! A bloody failure who can't take care of a single kid if my life _fucking_ depended on it!" They kicked the snow in their fit of rage.

"WELL," Papyrus scratched his head, racking his brain to calm the kid down. "Y-YOU SHOULDN'T BE TAKING CARE OF A KID, RIGHT? I MEAN, YOU'RE A KID TOO."

"As if that ever bloody mattered." The creature sniffled. "There's always someone smaller. There's always _someone_ who needs protection and I'm the best they get. How bloody pathetic is that?" A stream of pitiful sobs took over them. "It's always the little ones. It's never me. Why can't I... Why is it always…?"

They buried their face into their palm, openly weeping their heart out, their tears running free and dropping bit by bit into the ice cold snow below. They leaned into the tree besides them and slowly slid down until they were sitting, hugging their legs, head buried between their knees. Their shoulders shook with sobs.

With a heavy heart, Papyrus carefully approached and crouched down next to them.

"IT'S OKAY STRANGE CREATURE, IT'LL BE OKAY." He tried to reassure. "IT'S LIKE THEY SAY: IT'S ALWAYS DARKEST BEFORE DAWN! I'M NOT SURE WHAT THAT MEANS, BUT IT SURE SOUNDS NEAT, RIGHT?"

The kid continued to cry for a while, seemingly ignoring his encouraging words.

"C-COME ON NOW! IF THIS IS ABOUT YOUR 'CHILD' FRIEND, I'M SURE THEY'RE OKAY! MAYBE THEY JUST RAN OFF TO BUY YOU GUYS SOME NICE CREAM!"

"What?" The creature barked in between sniffles, raising their head to send him an incredulous look. "What the hell are you on about? Did you even hear what I said about the child?"

"YOU MEAN ABOUT THE PART WHERE YOU COULDN'T TAKE CARE OF THEM?"

"No! I meant the part where I said-" They stopped, swallowed their sobs and shook their head. "You know what? Nevermind." A sniff. Clumsy hands wiped at their tears. "I don't have time for this. I need to look for them. I need to find them right this instant."

"WHOA, HEY, NOT SO FAST." Papyrus stopped the kid from standing up. They actually looked like they might fall right over if they stood now with their wobbly knees. "YOU'RE NOT GONNA GET ANYTHING DONE WITH THOSE INJURIES. YOU NEED TO GET THEM CHECKED FIRST."

Blinking rapidly, they raised the limb in question, eyeing the one finger that was oddly bent from the rows of red, bruised knuckles. They winced with a scowl. "It can't be helped. Unless you know a healing spell or a sort of a boosting spell to help mine, there's little you can do."

"WAIT WAIT!" Papyrus stopped them again. "I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HEALING SPELLS BUT I DO HAVE SOME FOOD FOR YOU TO EAT! WOULD THAT HELP?"

The creature collapsed back on the ground, appearing cautiously skeptical. "Well it-" they sniffled. "Yes, I suppose it would. As long as it's not human food."

"GREAT! BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW ANY OTHER KIND!" Proudly, he pounded his fist at his chest once which caused the front of his armor to open up like a double gate, and from inside he pulled out a plate of his homemade pasta. "VOILA! BEHOLD MY CULINARY GENIUS! PAPYRUS BRAND ICE COLD BOLOGNESE!"

"What in the-?" The creature wiped their eyes. "Do you have a _fridge_ inside your _chest_?"

"NYEH HEH HEH! NOT EXACTLY!" Papyrus laughed. "MY ARMOR AND MY EMPTY CHEST CAVITY COMBINED CREATES A PERFECT AMALGAMATION OF A STORAGE DEVICE ANDA WEIGHT TRAINING TOOL! IT'S ONLY A FRIDGE BECAUSE IT'S SO COLD AROUND! PRETTY COOL, RIGHT? "

"But you had shelves in there, filled with jars of… pasta and tomato sauce."

"I ALSO HAVE SODA!" He said proudly. "THEY'RE MOSTLY FOR SANS THOUGH, I DON'T DRINK SUGARY STUFF."

"How... _quaint_." The creature shook their head and received the plate of pasta from the skeleton as well as a metal fork he pulled out of his chest pocket. There was a long moment of hesitation as they took their time examining the frozen meal on their lap with a furrowed brow. Brushing at their wet eyes one last time, they looked up. "Why? Why are you doing this?"

Papyrus quirked his eye socket. "DOING WHAT?"

"This." The kid waved their hand over the food. "You are helping me. I… don't understand why. Aren't you frightened of me?"

"WHAT?! THE GREAT PAPYRUS IS AFRAID OF NOTHING!" He frowned. "WELL, MAYBE WITH THE EXCEPTION OF EVIL CLOWNS WITH RED BALLOONS! ... AND OF VENGEFUL SPIRITS LIVING INSIDE AN EVIL VIDEO TAPE... AND EVIL LEPRECHAUNS... AND GIANT EVIL MARSHMALLOW MAN. Hm, I should really stop letting Sans choose the Friday night movies. Or at least stop him from choosing the evil ones." He shook his head. "ANYWAYS! MY POINT IS, I'M HELPING YOU BECAUSE I MUST! IT IS MY DUTY! BUT NOT ONLY THAT, IT IS WHAT MY HEART TELLS ME IS RIGHT!"

"Then your heart must have a problem. What if I threaten you again? What if I attack?"

"NYEH HEH HEH! YOU WORRY TOO MUCH, STRANGE CREATURE! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM AS STRONG AS I AM HANDSOME! AND NOT TO BLOW MY OWN HORN HERE BUT AS YOU CAN SEE: I AM _WICKEDLY_ HANDSOME. I'M SURE I CAN FIGHT BACK LONG ENOUGH TO CALM YOU DOWN AGAIN! BESIDES, I GET A STRONG FEELING THAT YOU WON'T BE ATTACKING ME AGAIN, RIGHT?"

Surprised ruby eyes gazed at him in disbelief, then slowly softened. The corner of the kid's lips tugged into a smile, a half smile but a genuine one nonetheless. "Unbelievable…" They whispered. "But perhaps I should have expected something like this. You _are_ a monster, after all."

Papyrus quirked his eye socket again. "IS THAT IMPORTANT?"

The kid shook their head. "No, it's nothing. Don't mind me." Without another word, they grabbed the fork and chipped off a strand of noodle off of the frozen pile and rolled it up. They looked up at Papyrus who returned the gaze with an excited grin. "Thank you for the meal and your generosity. I… I don't deserve this sort of treatment. Not after what I did."

"WORRY NOT, FOR I HAVE FORGIVEN YOU ALREADY FOR YOUR SLEIGHT!" Papyrus paused. "WAIT, YOU _ARE_ SORRY FOR WHAT YOU DID RIGHT?"

"Oh, yes. Of course I am. I terribly am."

"THEN THAT IS ALL THAT MATTERS! ALL WATER OVER THE BRIDGE!"

"I think you meant… Nevermind" The kid's smile brightened. "If it is as simple as that to you, then I will not look a gift horse in the mouth. I cannot even begin to convey how grateful I am, sir. I promise I will repay you in some way in the future."

"THE BEST REPAYMENT YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW IS EAT MY DELICIOUS PASTA AND TELL ME HONESTLY ON WHAT YOU THINK! A GREAT COOK NEEDS ALL THE FEEDBACK THEY NEED AFTER ALL! IF YOU FROU-FROU UP YOUR OPINION BECAUSE YOU WANT TO BE NICE, I'LL BE VERY CROSS WITH YOU!"

The kid giggled, a soft, lilted sound that was nothing like the insane jittering they made prior, and when they smiled, their face was kind, and inviting. It made Papyrus proud to know that he was the one to put the expression on them. "Of course, sir. Pardon me while I dig in."

They placed the frozen food in their mouth with little hesitation, and Papyrus watched with eager, twinkling eyes as the no-doubt brilliant flavour of his meal dissolved onto the creature's tongue. He could tell it was working too, he could see it: The creature's face was simply melting. Their anger, pain, sorrow, joy, and any other noteworthy emotions seeping away into a pure, unhampered, blank slate. It was like someone had replaced their face with a paper mask, and it was a sight truly powerful to witness.

Slowly, they pulled off a clean fork out of their mouth, and looked up at the skeleton with stoic neutrality.

"Papyrus." They began, their tone calm and controlled. "May I ask: Do you have any taste-buds?"

"NOPE!" He answered, prouder than a three year old with his first macaroni art.

There was a pause. "That seems rather unfortunate."

"IT DOES HINDER MY ABILITY TO REFINE MY SKILLS AS A CHEF I GUESS, BUT I DO NOT LET IT GET ME DOWN! I KNOW IF I KEEP TRYING, I WILL ONE DAY BECOME THE GREATEST COOK TO EVER LIVE!"

"How…" A frown. "Admirable."

"WHY THANK YOU!"

"-Though one would argue that the sense of taste is essential to one's ability as a chef. A requirement, if one might be so bold."

"YES, OR SO ONE MAY THINK!" He puffed out his chest. "ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE WHEN YOU PUT YOUR MIND TO IT! A HUMAN KNOWN AS BEAT-HOVEN WAS DEAF BUT HE IS STILL ONE OF THE GREATEST MUSICIANS TO DATE! SO WHY NOT A TASTE BLIND CHEF?"

"I believe it's pronounced 'Bae-toven', but I see your point." The creature then returned the plate of food with the fork on top.

"YOU'RE DONE?" He quizzed. "YOU STILL HAVE KETCHUP ON YOU!"

"Perhaps I will make do with the soda this time. I find that frozen pasta is… not exactly to my liking."

"OH. DOES THIS MEAN YOU DIDN'T LIKE IT?"

"No, I did not." They admitted, then quickly added when they saw the skeleton frown in disappointment, "B-but you must understand: This is the first time that I'm trying a frozen pasta. Perhaps I don't like the dish in general. It probably has nothing to do with your culinary skills, which I'm sure is fantastic."

He quickly shrugged it off. "NO, IT'S ALRIGHT! I UNDERSTAND THAT NOT EVERYONE HAS THE SAME TASTE IN FOOD! MAYBE I CAN INVITE YOU TO DINNER SOMETIMES! I'LL MAKE YOU SOME WARM PASTA, HOW ABOUT THAT? HAVE YOU TRIED WARM PASTA BEFORE?"

The kid sighed in relief. "Yes. Yes I have, and I would love to try it out if you are willing to cook some."

"FANTASTIC! THEN IT'S A DINNER!" He placed the plate back inside his chest and pulled out a purple can from the upper shelf closer to his collarbone. "HERE IS YOUR SODA!"

The creature received the can with a small thanks and proceeded to pop and drink the content with little hesitation. As they swallowed, their hand began shimmering with magic. There was a loud crack which made them wince, but once they opened their eyes to check, their broken knuckles were back in position, the angry bruises fading away.

"THERE WE GO! YOU'RE ALL BETTER!"

"Almost." They took another long swig of the soda. This time the side of their head shimmered, and when it was gone, all the dark red blotches were gone. "Goodness me." The creature blinked slowly. "That feels… _so_ much better. You never realise how good you have it until you experience the other side."

"NOW YOU'RE ALL BETTER?"

"The world isn't constantly spinning anymore so yes, I would say so." They stood up, brushing themselves off refinedly. They hopped on their two feet lightly as if to test out their body. They nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Papyrus. Lowering their head, they bowed. "I thank you for the assistance, Papyrus. You were an unexpected help."

"MY PLEASURE, LITTLE SKELETON WITH FLESH!" Papyrus bowed back.

"Little skeleton with-" The creature laughed, the same soft giggle which Papyrus found much better suited for them than the creepy crooked one they made before. "You are the most amusing person I've met in a while, sir. I dare say you are much more pleasant to speak to than your brother."

"OH, WHY THANK-" Papyrus blinked, then gasped, his head doing a three sixty on his neck. "WHAT?! YOU _MET_ SANS?!"

"Why yes. A pleasant meeting, that. Didn't I mention it? I apologise if I haven't."

He slapped his hands over his cheeks, his mind reeling. "OH MY GOD! THAT'S HOW YOU KNOW MY NAME! I NEVER REALISED! WHERE IS HE NOW?! HE'S SUPPOSED TO BE ON GUARD DUTY AND HE JUST-"

"Ran away?" They finished for him, scoffing. "Of course he did. I don't know where he is now, but I assume he is lazing about somewhere."

Papyrus was momentarily phased at the snide comment, then growled to himself. "UGH! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! I JUST MET YOU AND YOU ALREADY KNOW ABOUT MY BROTHER'S GREATEST FLAW!"

"Worry not, sir. His flaws are his alone. They do not reflect onto you."

"BUT THAT'S NOT THE PROBLEM! I DON'T CARE ABOUT _ME_ , I WANT _HIM_ TO NOT HAVE THESE FLAWS! I MEAN I'M NOT ASKING FOR PERFECTION BUT THOSE JOKES _CAN_ BE BETTER!"

"Hmph, they _were_ rather subpar."

"TELL ME ABOUT IT! IF ONLY I CAN GET HIM TO DO MORE TASTEFUL JOKES, I WOULDN'T BE AS WORRIED FOR HIM AS I AM NOW!"

The little creature tilted their head at him, a small smile growing on their lips. "You are not much like your brother, are you?"

Papyrus was slightly phased by the sudden change in topic. "I AM MUCH TALLER, IF THAT'S WHAT YOU MEAN?"

"Ha! Yes, there is that, but I was more alluding to your…" The creature waved their hand at him. "Refinement, I believe is what you have. Higher standard. You are also very vigilant. Persevering."

"OH." Papyrus' cheeks flushed. "THANK YOU, STRANGE CREATURE! BEING A GUARD MEANS PROTECTING THE PEOPLE YOU LOVE! IT'S A JOB THAT NEEDS TO BE TAKEN VERY SERIOUSLY."

"A commendable attitude. I'm sure your superiors are most satisfied with your performance." The smile on the creature's face turned a touch sour. "Now, while I am very much grateful for your hospitality, I must now be off."

Papyrus did a double take. "WHAT? WHERE ARE YOU GOING?! YOU JUST RECOVERED FROM AN INJURY! YOU NEED TO REST!"

"Nonsense. I've already wasted a lot of time as it is. I need to go and find the child."

"RIGHT! THIS 'CHILD' FRIEND OF YOURS! THEN PERHAPS I CAN BE OF ASSISTANCE!"

"Oh no you mustn't. You've already helped so much, I cannot ask that of you."

"NONSENSE!" Papyrus said with a puff of chest. "THIS SECTOR OF THE FOREST IS WHERE ME AND MY BROTHER HAVE BEEN TOLD TO GUARD BY THE GUARD CAPTAIN! WHICH BASICALLY MEANS THAT I ALONE AM THE GUARD OF THIS DOMAIN! IF I DON'T HELP YOU OUT, WHO WILL?!"

"But… Are you sure? I've been less than polite, made assumptions that I shouldn't have. I almost hurt you."

"AND YOU NEED TO STOP HANGING OVER IT! I ALREADY SAID IT WAS ALL WATER OVER THE BRIDGE RIGHT?"

"I… Hm, I suppose you did." The creature smiled, slowly but surely. "Thank you, Papyrus. You truly are a 'Great' person."

Papyrus gasped, hard, nearly fainting with joy. "YOU… YOU REALLY THINK SO?"

"Yes I do. You've saved me from a less than optimal situation, despite how I've treated you in the beginning. It is something not many else would have done. You… you are my hero of the day."

"WOWEE… WOWEE! ME, A HERO. A HERO! A _HERO!"_ Papyrus chanted, star like twinkle in his eyes. "I MEAN UHH, EHEM. LET US BE ON OUR WAY THEN, CITIZEN! I ASSURE YOU, WITH MY HEROIC ABILITIES AT HELP, YOU WILL FIND YOUR LOST FRIEND IN NO TIME! NOW UHH, CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENED? HOW DID YOU LOSE YOUR FRIEND IN THE FIRST PLACE?"

"Huh, was it not obvious?" The kid hummed. "I must clarify that I didn't _lose_ the child exactly."

"REALLY? BUT WHY ARE YOU LOOKING FOR SOMEONE THAT'S NOT LOST?"

"Well, they _are_ lost, I just didn't lose them myself." The kid sighed heavily for what they were about to say. "There's been a kidnapping."

Papyrus' face dropped like a sack of raw potato. "Kidnapping?" He repeated quietly, "KIDNAPPING?!" He gasped so hard his jaw almost fell off its hinges.

"Quite. Also, if I am not wrong, I believe I've been mugged as well."

Papyrus' jaw _did_ fall off this time. He was just quick enough to catch it before it hit the ground and managed to adjust it back in its place just in time to boom again, "MUGGING?! KIDNAPPING?! OH MY GOD! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THIS EARLIER?! WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN?!"

The creature crossed their arms, glancing over to the side as their brows drew in concentration. "My memory is hazy but I know that there was this... this monster, Snowdrake, I believe I've mentioned. The one you recognised."

"SWEET JANGLING JELLY BABIES! HE RUNS AWAY FROM HOME FOR WEEKS AND _THIS_ IS WHAT HE'S BEEN UP TO?!"

"Well, I can't say that this is what he's been doing the entirety of his absence but yes, right now it seems he is delving into some... _shady_ business." The creature muttered with acid in their tone. "He distracted me while another monster whom I assume is his accomplice assaulted the child from behind. Then they attacked me, knocked me out and took the child from me. They took my bag too. My mother gave me that, those rowdy yobs."

Papyrus stumbled back, his head spinning from the news of all these evil acts performed right under his nose. "THEFT! ASSAULT! AN ATTACK FROM THE BACK! HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN?! WHAT HAVE I BEEN GUARDING ALL THIS TIME?!"

"You are but one man, sir. You can hardly blame yourself for not having omnipotence over the entire forest."

"BUT I _SHOULD_ HAVE OMNIPOTASSIUM OVER THE ENTIRE FOREST! QUICKLY! WHAT DOES THE CHILD LOOK LIKE?! WE NEED TO LOOK FOR THEM RIGHT NOW!"

The creature sighed. "Well, they are similar to me in appearance but smaller and younger. They're wearing blue and purple striped shirt. Hair is brown like mine, but a shade darker. They're a touch short for a ten year old, I find."

"SWEET GUMMY BEARS ON THE MOON! THE KID IS TEN?! THEY HURT A TEN YEAR OLD?!"

"Indeed. Quite the low lives if I say so myself." The creature grumbled, their expression turning ugly for an instant. "But they are not in pain now, for what it's worth."

"OH, THANK GOODNESS FOR THAT." Papyrus sighed in relief before his brain caught up with him. "WAIT, HOW DO YOU KNOW THEY'RE NOT IN PAIN?"

"I have my ways, though I suppose I _am_ simply guessing at this point." They shrugged off. "I just know for certain that they are not conscious at all, which would mean that they cannot be in pain."

"OH. WELL, THAT'S GOOD. I GUESS? BUT HEY! THIS IS STILL UNACCEPTABLE! WE HAVE TO FIND THEM AND BRING THE CRIMINALS TO JUSTICE!"

"A sentiment I agree wholeheartedly. I am very much grateful for your service, Great Papyrus. You are an honourable man."

"NYEH HEH, THANK YOU CITIZEN!" Papyrus masked his embarrassment with proud bravado, though he couldn't stop his cheeks from reddening. "ALRIGHT! ON WITH THE JOB! I PERSONALLY CAN'T SAY THAT I HAVE ANY IDEA WHERE THE CRIMINALS WENT, BUT I THINK I KNOW WHO MIGHT!"

"Do you?" The creature said, pleasantly surprised and most definitely impressed.

"YES! COME! WE'LL TAKE A SHORTCUT!" The skeleton began jogging his way into the forest before quickly doing a complete one eighty. "GREAT BONEMARROWS! I FORGOT TO ASK FOR YOUR NAME! I'M SO SORRY ABOUT THAT, SMALL SKELETON WITH FLESH!"

The creature blinked, then hid their giggle under their dainty hand. "It is no matter. Our meeting wasn't exactly by the textbook definition, yes?" They reassured, then bowed low, curtsying with their fingers grabbing onto an imaginary fabric. "I am Chara. Charmed to meet you, Great Papyrus. And I apologise for my rudeness earlier. Had I known who you were, I would not have attacked in such manner."

"APOLOGY ACCEPTED! YOU WERE ATTACKED AND SIMPLY STRUCK BACK AT AN UNKNOWN ASSAILANT. IT'S NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT!"

"You are too kind."

"WELL, AS YOU ALREADY KNOW, I AM NONE OTHER THAN THE _GREAT_ PAPYRUS, FUTURE MEMBER OF THE ROYAL GUARD! IT IS A PLEASURE TO MAKE YOUR ACQUAINTANCE!"

"Likewise." The creature stepped up. "Now, let us make haste. I have a child to get back."

Papyrus nodded and turned back around to take charge, acting with professionalism and leadership, though on the inside he was squealing like a little girl getting her first christmas present from Santa Claus. There was no doubt that what has happened to this Chara creature and their 'child' was unfortunate and heinous and should never occur to anyone ever again, but he still couldn't stop the giddy excitement filling his whole being at the idea of actually going out there and doing some proper guard work besides recalibrating puzzles and helping the elderlies find their way back home. Not that those deeds were boring or anything, but they did tend to get rather repetitive.

He had his initial doubt about this weird creature before but as it turned out, they were just worried and trying to rescue their friend who's been kidnapped. How bad can they really be? Besides, they were actually kind of pleasant once you got over the initial hurdle of 'I'm holding a magic knife on your throat' thing. The two of them may have only met for less than half an hour, but something told him that this was going to be a start of a beautiful friendship.

* * *

"Come on. Pick up. Pick up!" Alphys rolled her feet on the floor, hopping about like a girl desperately in need of a toilet break.

Finally, there was a click and a familiar voice echoed in. _"yellow?"_

"Sans! Oh my god! It's Alphys! I've been trying to reach you for thirty minutes! Where the hell have you been?!"

" _at grillby's."_

"At _Grillby's?!_ What are you doing there when there's a-"

" _pfft- nah i'm just kidding. this is my voice message. if you're hearing this, i'm not available. so uhh, leave a message after the beep or whatever! ciao! … wait, what do i... do i just hang up now?"_

_*Click. *BEEP!_

Alphys stared at her phone for what seemed like an eternity. Then in a single motion, she growled out loud in frustration, raised her hand above her head, stopped, then shakily placed the device on her desk, gently as a butterfly. She groaned and buried her face into her palms.

' _Don't worry_ ,' _he said. 'I'm always here when it's important,' he said. Well it seemed like a damn important time right now, so why wasn't he picking up?!_

She inhaled long and deep to calm her insides which had been training for the olympics in gymnastics for the past half hour, and turned back to the screen which had the image of Papyrus and the human Chara wading through the forest. Just the sight of them together was making her lose her mind. His brother was travelling together with a _human_ for god's sake. Didn't Sans want to know that?!

She had to admit, when those teens came and ambushed the two humans, a small part of her felt awful watching. They were just kids after all, enemy or not, and then to see them beaten up, have them separated from each other, each left to fend for themselves in a world they barely knew. It was a lot like a plot to an anime.

She knew she shouldn't. She really, _really_ shouldn't, but a very small part of her was sort of rooting for them to find one another again: She wanted to see them yearn for each other day and night. She wanted to see them go through hell and back, just to get a step closer to each other. Then she wanted them to have a tearful reunion, complete with warm sunlight, inspired orchestral music and a close up of the two simply staring at one another, knowing that they had each other once more, with trust, with love. And then they would kiss. And it'll be so darn _cute_ she'll be screaming, bouncing up and down her couch as she watched with a bowl of crisps on her lap.

Well, a fat chance that was happening anymore because her fujoshi wishes were pushed to the back of her mind when she saw that Chara kid put a freaking knife on Papyrus' neck! It appeared that those two have reached a truce of some sort now, but she still wasn't so convinced on how safe her friend was.

The amount of magic the cameras caught on the human when they realised their partner was hurt was… troubling to say the least. And not only was it that, it was what she saw before Papyrus found them that got her worried to bits.

After the assault, she'd figured that the human might die from hypothermia exacerbated by blood loss if no one came to help, but then she saw it: An aura of blood red magic rising from the human like a ghost. At first she thought her gadgets were malfunctioning and was capturing a phantom image, until the aura literally, legitimately, casted a spell: It set the human on magic fire to keep them warm and even began to heal their injuries to a very small degree. It was fascinating to watch, in a sense that watching a scantily armoured woman cut down a five storey high robot with a katana was fascinating: Her mind was taking in the information received by her eyes while knowing that what it was seeing wasn't real.

Except this time, it _was_.

It made no sense. Magic was a tool that every living being was born with in their SOUL. It didn't act on it own unless commanded; it didn't have any affect on its own without being structured into a spell; it didn't look at a situation and comprehend it enough to make a smart decision on what spells to caste; and it certainly didn't _shriek_ at anyone it 'sees' without being told to do so.

_I mean, what was that even about? It was like it ran away the moment it saw Papyrus. Like it was afraid or something._

It was terribly confusing, and a part of her wanted to bring the human in alive for a full scientific analysis, even as another part wanted her to keep a hundred mile distance from them at all time.

From what she gathered so far, the kid was powerful, knew a few very dangerous spells, was sadistic to a degree even to their own 'friend' and seemed somewhat prone to violent outbursts. Add to that a self operating magic that _shrieked_ at people when they were near? It was a catastrophic mix of character ready to blow up at any minute.

They appeared amicable now, but who knew when the knife was going to drop, both proverbially and literally? Papyrus was dancing on a very thin rope above a fiery pit of lava, and it was causing Alphys to tither on the edge of a mental breakdown from just watching.

Sighing out loud, she picked up her phone again.

Did she care that this was going to be her fifteenth phone call in that half hour alone? Well, was Mew Mew Kissy 2 the best anime of the year?

Of course not.

She was going to try to call that lazybones Sans until either her battery died or he finally decides to crawl out of whatever hole he was hiding from and picked up his stupid phone. And seeing how she had her phone plugged into the charger, it seemed inevitable how this will turn out.

Her yellow claws pecked at the touchscreen with extra force, as if her excessive aggression on her poor device will be transferred over to her friend.

She then stopped halfway through the number when she saw a glimpse of movement in the corner of her eyes.

She whipped around, trying to catch whatever she saw before it got away. She'd had a mild case of roach infestation in her lab for months now and though she understood it was an inevitability with her admittedly messy lifestyle, she still liked to exterminate the pests whenever she could because, come on, they were freaking creepy, crawly, Imma-casually-crawl-all-over-your-toothbrush-when-you're-not-looking roaches. She didn't want to deal with any of _that_.

As it turned out however, it wasn't roaches that she saw.

A grainy static screen greeted her, amongst the ocean of feeds coming in from the security cameras around the Underground. She read the label on the corner of each screen around the broken feed and deduced that it was one of the cameras filming over the routes of Snowdin forest that had gone out.

_Did ice get inside the wires again?_ She rushed over to her desk and began drumming at her keyboard.

She then stopped again.

Another feed had went out. Another camera that was positioned amidst the Snowdin path. It was the one installed not so far away from the first feed, she realised. And even as she figured this out, another camera feed went out nearby.

Two feeds went out to her left, then to her right.

Three feeds went out. Four feeds. Six. _Ten_.

Alphy backed off in shock. Cameras were dying left and right, too many for her to even react. Everywhere she looked the feeds were being consumed in static, but only in Snowdin for some reason. This could not have been a natural phenomenon. Each camera had their own power source and broadcaster, meaning when one went out, none of the others should be affected.

_Which means that someone is taking out the cameras on purpose._

A _lot_ of someones in fact, because there was no way anyone can move around so fast to take out each and every camera she installed. How were they even finding them all like this? Those cameras were supposed to be meticulously hidden.

She quickly typed an extra command on her terminal, and the giant surveillance screen zoomed in to show only the feed from Snowdin. However, by this time it was already too late. All of the feed was gone, filling the screen with ocean of statics.

All except for two screens in the bottom right corner.

One of them went out, but Alphys caught it: a glimpse of something right next to the camera. Something that was boney white mixed with a deep ocean blue.

Alphys ran her hand over her keyboard, and the lone surviving feed took over the entire screen.

"Sans?!" She shouted into her desktop mic. "Sans! Don't hide! I _saw_ you in the previous feed! What on earth are you doing?! Did you just take out the _entire_ surveillance feed to Snowdin?!"

The audio from the lone camera didn't receive any answer, but the feed was still alive, as though whoever was trying to kill the feed was on the verge of being caught and was brainstorming what they should do next.

Growling, Alphy yanked up her phone in a hurry, finished dialling the number and held it against her ear.

The dial tone rang on her phone, and from her computer Sans' ringtone began to blare.

"Ah ha! Got you! I know you're there Sans! Come out of hiding!"

Amidst the blaring ringtone a heavy sigh was heard. There was a bit of shuffling and a small beep.

The ringtone ended.

" _yellow."_

Alphys almost collapsed into her chair. She took in a deep calming breath before speaking up. "I'm going to give you ten seconds to explain yourself, mister."

" _whoa, okay mum. looks like someone's pissed."_

"Uhh, you've been ignoring all of my calls and just virtually stabbed me in the eye watching over the whole of Snowdin. So yeah, I'm pissed."

" _can we get off the phone? or maybe just get rid of the camera audio? i'm getting echoes."_

"Sans!"

" _alright, gee. you sound like papyrus now, you know that?"_

"Sans." Alphnys gripped the edge of her desk. _Hard_. "What. Are. You. Doing?"

" _eh, let's say i'm running an experiment of sort. is that believable? i think that's believable."_

"No it's _not_ believable! What kind of experiment needs you to break dozens of my equipment?"

" _aw, don't make it such a big deal. they're not broken, i just switched them off you know? with the 'off' switch? send someone to turn them back on again and you'll get your 'eyes' back."_

"Sans. Explanation. _Now_."

" _look,"_ He sighed. _"i just happened to find some information that i wanted to verify myself. i didn't want to hand you unchecked facts, you know?"_

"That's great and I appreciate your efforts and all, but _why_ the _cameras?"_

" _i don't know. because i wanted this to be a big surprise, i guess? look, i gotta go. do me a favor and delete this recording, kay? i know you're making one and i really don't want this on the records."_

"Keep what on the records? Sans, please, _what is going on_?!"

" _alphs. buddy."_

Alphys jumped as Sans hopped onto the screen, staring directly into her eyes though that would practically be impossible through the camera. The grin on his face was humorous, but was in no way friendly. Staring back, Alphys felt a sharp chill run down her spine. " _just delete the recordings, okay? and trust me, i'll explain everything in due time. just keep an eye on my brother, will you? oh wait, you can't do that. did you find those info on human magic potentials?"_

"N-no?" She mumbled, all of her anger gone up in smokes.

" _well, i guess you can get that info in then. i can trust you with it right?"_

"Y-y-yeah, sure."

" _good. gotta go now. i'll call you when this is over. text me until then. oh and uhh…"_ He leaned into the camera and Alphys took an unconscious step back. _"delete this recording."_

Sans paused, as though waiting for a response. Her tongue tied up, all Alphys could do was nod, and though there would have been absolutely no way that he could have seen her do it, his hollow grin widened.

" _welp, i guess that's it. you should come over later, i think paps is gonna try a new recipe or something for dinner. it'll be good to have someone with a taste-bud tell us how it is. so uhh… yeah. see ya!"_

The phone clicked off and so did the last remaining camera feed.

Slowly, Alphys clicked her phone shut. She looked back up at the monitor and the endless static rushing about. She half thought to check the other feeds to see if any of them came back, but that would probably be unlikely.

She sunk into her chair, her stiff back and shoulder sagging as she released the breath she didn't know she'd been holding.

She did not like that. She did not like that at all. She knew she should do something, but what? Should she check on Papyrus again? She wanted to but it was going to be impossible without her surveillance cameras. Should she fix her cameras? That would be productive, and very much necessary in the future, but that was going to take eons to complete on her own. She usually got Sans or Papyrus to do the task, but given their position, it was unlikely that either of them would be available to help.

Should… should she go tell King Asgore of the current situation?

That seemed like a smart idea. That seemed like a _very_ smart idea with promising results. She could get him up to date with the situation, provide him with the necessary precautions to take when taking on the Chara human and that'll be that. The King will mobilise a search party for the children, capture them and do the dirty deed. The monsters go free, they party for a while and she'll go back to her little hidey hole to watch all the new anime she'll get to access from the surface world.

Happiness all around.

She should do it. She should absolutely do it: grab her phone and call King Asgore right now.

_delete this recording._

The memory of Sans' dead eyes, the pair of dark voids that seemed to devour her soul, gave her the chills that froze her limbs, strangled the air out of her throat. He wasn't here now. He would have no way of knowing if she ever decided to call the King. And yet...

With trembling hands, she grabbed her phone, tapped the screen a few times, and deleted the automatically generated recording of her call with Sans.

With a shuddering sigh, she wheeled herself over to her computer and began typing away, running through the core database for humans and all the magical potentials they've presented in the past.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: That's it then. I'm hoping I got the emotions at the right pace with the long scene with Paps and Chara. I feel like I've rushed in some places. Paps is fun but I found him very difficult to write without either A, being too wacky and random, or B, going too serious and out of character. It's the fine middle line between flanderization and sounding like a completely different character. Well, I'll let you guys be the judge as always.**
> 
> **Ideas abandoned for this chapter: Chara not hitting Frisk. Chara and Frisk fighting the Snowdin teens in a normal way.** **Chara trying to explain Papyrus that they're the princess of Underground.** **Chara spewing decades old racist propaganda jokes at Snowdrake.**
> 
> **And now, since you guys liked it so much last time, here's another omake from the deleted scenes.**
> 
> * * *
> 
> **Omake (Chara trying to explain Papyrus that they're the princess of Underground)**
> 
> **Chara:** Greetings sir, I am Chara Dreemurr
> 
> **Paps:** DREEMURR?! BUT THAT'S THE SAME NAME AS THE KING! ARE YOU TWO RELATED BY ANY CHANCE?
> 
> **Chara:** Oh, I'm glad you asked. You see I am his-
> 
> **Paps:** HIS FAN!
> 
> **Chara:** … I'm sorry?
> 
> **Paps:** HIS FAN! YOU'RE HIS FAN, OR AT LEAST YOUR PARENTS ARE! SO THEY NAMED YOU AFTER THE KING! I MEAN, I DON'T BLAME THEM: OUR KING SURE IS GREAT!
> 
> **Chara:** No, wait. I'm not his _fan,_ sir. I'm his-
> 
> **Paps:** PET? THAT DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT.
> 
> **Chara:** No, I'm his child! Where the hell did you even get 'Pet' from?
> 
> **Paps:** HIS CHILD?
> 
> **Chara:** Indeed. I'm of royalty, the future ruler of this land.
> 
> **Paps:** WELL THAT DOESN'T SOUND RIGHT. YOU DON'T LOOK ANYTHING LIKE A GOAT! YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE ANY FURS! **(Papyrus squints his eyes)** OH WAIT, YES YOU DO.
> 
> **(Chara turns red)**
> 
> **Chara:** What?! How do you-? I do _not_! **(Chara checks their skin)** Do I?
> 
> **Paps:** YOU HAVE LITTLE SOFT FUR GROWING ON YOUR ARM.
> 
> **Chara:** But that's… Ugh, damn it all, I am definitely burning these off later. Anyway, I'm not his biological child, sir. I'm adopted! Of course I don't look like him.
> 
> **Paps:** REALLY? I DON'T REMEMBER HIS MAJESTY SAYING ANYTHING ABOUT A NEW CHILD.
> 
> **Chara:** There's a reason for that. But I assure you, I am telling you the truth.
> 
> **(Papyrus rubs his chin in thought, then snaps his fingers)**
> 
> **Paps:** OOOOH! I GET IT!
> 
> **Chara:** Ugh. Get what?
> 
> **Paps:** YOU'RE PLAYING PRETEND!
> 
> **Chara:** Pretend?
> 
> **Paps:** YES! YOU'RE PRETENDING TO BE OUR KING'S CHILD! AND NOW YOU'RE TRYING TO GET BACK TO THE CASTLE AFTER BEING KIDNAPPED BY A GIANT TURTLE THAT IS ACTUALLY A DRAGON SOMEHOW!
> 
> **Chara:** A giant... _what?_
> 
> **Paps:** SO WHO'S PLAYING THE TWO ITALIAN PLUMBER BROTHERS? I ALWAYS PLAY THE GREEN ONE SINCE I'M SO TALL! THOUGH I DO SOMETIMES PLAY AS THE EGG LAYING DINOSAUR AT TIMES, I DON'T REALLY LIKE IT BECAUSE I OFTEN GET DITCHED DOWN A CLIFF FOR A PETTY JUMP DISTANCE THAT WOULDN'T BE NEEDED IF _SOMEBODY_ TIMED HIS JUMP RIGHT!
> 
> **Chara:** … You sir, have lost your head.
> 
> **Paps:** WHAT?! **(Papyrus feels at his head)** NO I DIDN'T, IT'S RIGHT HERE.
> 
> **Chara:** I wasn't being…No, you know what? I don't have time for this. I'm leaving.
> 
> **Paps:** WHAT? WAIT, BUT YOU HAVEN'T TOLD ME WHO PLAYS MARIO AND LUIGI! CAN I PLAY MARIO? SANS NEVER LETS ME PLAY MARIO! STRANGE CREATURE? HELLO?
> 
> * * *
> 
> **Next up: Sans starts executing his plan.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Aw, goodness, look at the time. Five months again, is it? I was so sure that I could have done it in two weeks, but then again I am horrible with my schedules. Somebody guessed five months ago that I would do this again, and I was thinking "Ooh gee, I hope I don't". And I did! Kudos to you sir/madam, and my apologies to everyone else, especially to you Jay Villanueva! I promised you two weeks, FOUR weeks ago, and I feel terrible about that.**
> 
> **I do have every intention of continuing this series, and in the past few months I've finally pushed myself to figure out where the hell ACT 2 is going to go from the start to finish, so that should help me pump out the chapters a lot faster this time around. I know I said this before, but I'm hoping to return to my regular update cycle if I can. I'll do my best, but if you still think I won't be sticking by it, I won't blame you. I'm not gonna give any excuse for this delay, just that I am very sorry about it. I never push myself to finish things and it's a part about myself that I hate the most. I'm going to try and fix it. Whether that'll work, is anyone's guess.**
> 
> **For those who are still around, I give you this, admittedly shorter, a bit of a filler chapter. I really wanted something more exciting to happen inside, but I'm afraid this is a necessary prelude for what I have planned.**
> 
> **So I hope you enjoy as much as you can, but ultimately you guys are always the judge.**
> 
> **On with the show~**

* * *

Chara spent their time walking with Papyrus explaining to him what they could remember about their assault, detailing him their assailants as well as providing their made up theories on why they had been attacked. They knew those monsters had attacked them in order to obtain the final human soul of course, but they weren't about to disclose that little tidbit of information to a Guard of all people. Especially not to one whom Sans had described as a 'human hunting fanatic'. The fact that Papyrus thought they were an odd, never-seen-before monster was a good luck equivalent to finding a pearl while eating clams, and though they _did_ question how on earth Papyrus didn't make the connection despite specifically calling them a 'skeleton with flesh', they weren't going to look this particular gift horse in the mouth.

Papyrus, throughout their explanation, listened diligently and even went as far as to write down notes so that he got a better picture of what had happened. Ice Cap and Jerry were the names that he gave, along with Snowdrake whom Chara already knew. All three attackers were children, teenagers who were in their typical rebellious phase: They were known for their rudeness, their cheap, often mean spirited pranks and their habit of spewing poorly constructed ice puns.

Besides those minor details, Papyrus had also provided them with the address of the three's families, and even had phone contacts with the lot. To say that he was enormously helpful was a grand understatement. Chara, who at first followed him because they believed any help was better than none, now believed that running across the tall skeleton had been a great fortune indeed.

"WELL!" Papyrus said as he tapped the screen of what Chara believed was his mobile telephone (except this device had no buttons at all besides the one on its side. And the screen took up the entire front! What lunacy was that?) "THAT WAS ICE CAP AND JERRY'S PARENTS, AND BOTH FAMILIES SAY THEY HAVEN'T HEARD FROM THEIR KIDS SINCE THEY WENT OUT THIS MORNING!"

"Hm, so they are still out and about, are they? Figures. What time is it now?"

Papyrus tapped his device again (A phone that has a clock as well? Madness). "IT'S FOUR THIRTY! WHAT TIME WAS IT WHEN YOU, UHH, YOU KNOW? GOT ATTACKED?"

"I didn't have the time on me when it happened so I cannot be sure when it was exactly," Chara paused to think. "But I am certain that it was after two o'clock. That's the last time I checked the time."

"HRM, SO THEY HAD AT MOST TWO HOURS ON THEIR HAND. THAT'S… NOT GOOD."

"Indeed not." With that much time on their hand, those hooligans could already be reaching the outskirts of Waterfall village if they were heading for the castle directly. The good news, however, was that it was starting to get late in the afternoon, and from what Papyrus had told them, those teens had a curfew to meet. There was still a chance that they were still around Snowdin, camping out for the day, finding a hiding place for the child while they return to their family as though nothing had happened.

The whole idea still irked Chara somewhat, even though it was the best case scenario for themselves. What audacity did those creatures have to manage such act? To go home and enjoy the night after what they did to them and the child? The idea that those teens were going home, chatting and laughing with their family, while the child remained frozen and alone, made Chara's blood boil like a pot over a burning coal.

"WELL, WORRY NOT, MY GOOD COMPANION!" Papyrus said, making Chara snap out of their flash flood of anger. "I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM HELPING YOU NOW! IT IS ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE WE FIND YOUR FRIEND!"

With a deep inhale, Chara pocketed their rage into a little bundle and tucked it into the recess of their mind. They turned to the skeleton and smiled. "Your confidence is something to admire." They said with as much grace they could muster, which they believed wasn't a lot at that point. It was probably a better idea to change the subject right then. "So, what's our plan then? I just realised you've never said. You simply said you were taking me somewhere, to some _one_?"

"NYEH?" Papyrus blinked, then quickly proceeded to slap a hand over his forehead. "GYEH! OH MY GOD, I TOTALLY FORGOT! I'M SORRY STRANGE CREATURE. YOU MUST BE TOTALLY CONFUSED!"

Chara shook their head. "It is of no problem, sir. I trusted that you knew what you were doing." And they honestly did. Papyrus, while a bit of a simple minded sort, was clearly very passionate about his duties and service to the people. It was admirable, something that made him so agreeable in Chara's eyes.

"YOU ARE TOO KIND! I WAS ACTUALLY THINKING OF SEEING A FEW PEOPLE AROUND HERE INSTEAD OF JUST ONE. MY COLLEAGUES ARE STATIONED ALL OVER THIS FOREST. AND GUESS WHAT? THEY'RE ALL DOGS! THEY'RE GREAT FOR FINDING MISSING PEOPLE! SO WE'LL GO AND TALK TO THEM ONE BY ONE AND SEE IF THEY CAN HELP!"

Chara hummed to themselves, certainly seeing the benefits of his idea. Unfortunately, it wasn't without its flaws. "These colleagues of yours, they're all guards yes?" They asked.

"YEPPERS! IN FACT, THE CANINE UNITS ARE PART OF THE ROYAL GUARDS!"

_Ah_. _That complicates a few things._ They thought with a sneer.

Currently, Papyrus didn't realise that they were a human, a pure coincidence brought on by nothing but chance. What would their luck be like against a whole squad of Royal Guard Dogs? They probably have had a myriad of training to hone their human capturing skills. Chara would be like a rabbit hopping into a field of sleeping snakes: they would just be asking for trouble.

But then what other choice did they have? They needed Papyrus to find the child. And he, in turn, needed the dogs to do so. They were going to have to risk it if they were to fulfil their mission before it was too late.

It wasn't that big of a deal, now that they thought about it. Nine out of ten monsters were gullible enough to believe anything anyone says. They'll believe it if Chara flat out lied to them and told them they weren't a human. And for those other one out of ten, they could easily use Papyrus as a shield. If they could claim that they were a skeleton with flesh, Papyrus would back them up. And if a person of authority -for instance, a guard- claimed that they weren't human... Well then, they weren't. It was simple as that.

It was a bit of a gamble, certainly, but it was either take this chance and find the child or wander aimlessly through the forest alone and most probably get lost themselves. They had neither the time nor the patience for sitting around doing nothing. They had to find the child. They _were_ going to find the child, and nothing was going to get in their way.

Nothing.

"ERM, DO YOU HAVE SOMETHING AGAINST DOGS?"

They blinked. Reality caught up with them in that moment and they turned to Papyrus with a hasty smile. "Er, um, no. No, of course not."

"OH. GOOD! YOU HAD THIS REALLY SCARY EXPRESSION ON YOUR FACE RIGHT THEN SO I WASN'T SURE."

They didn't say anything and simply tried their best not to appear too mortified.

"WELL THEN! LET US MARCH ON! YOUR FRIEND'S FREEDOM AWAITS! AND ALSO SOME NICE CREAMS! DO YOU LIKE NICE CREAMS?"

"Of course. Who doesn't?"

"ALRIGHT! THEN ONCE THIS IS ALL OVER AND YOUR FRIEND IS HERE WITH US, WE'LL ALL GO AND GET A NICE SERVE OF NICE CREAM FOR ALL OF US! IT'LL BE GREAT!" With that, bubbling with all the giddiness of a five year old, Papyrus jogged ahead, leading them through the forest with a renewed purpose and an extra spring in his steps.

Chara chuckled softly at the sight, the skeleton's demeanor reminding them much of the child. The little one had once told them that Papyrus was their bestest friend, one they always loved to hang out with every day, and Chara could see why. Those two together would be a duo of unstoppable joy and kindness, a terror of unfathomable sweetness. Chara was actually feeling a bit sick thinking of it.

Then, just like that, their smile sombered, fading bit by bit until there was nothing left but a sorrowful frown in its place.

They lowered their gaze to the snowy ground, closed their eyes, delved into the empty void that was their mind, and focused.

_Child?_ They called out, trying to keep their voice cool, collected, and in no way desperate for an answer. _Are you awake? Can you hear me? Are… Are you alright?_

They waited for a reply with baited breath.

And of course, there was nothing.

No words, images, or even the mere presence of the child came through their connection. Just like the last seven times.

Disappointment flooded Chara, only to be swallowed up by an uncontrollable urge to punch something over and over. They opened their eyes, sucked in the cold air and held it, dousing their rage down to a low simmer. As relieving physical violence would have been at that moment, they weren't too keen on breaking their hand on a dead wood trunk again so soon.

They sighed, releasing their anger along with the hot cloud of vapour, letting it go, purging their insides of the beastly emotion. It was a good thing, supposedly, but what was left without their anger, Chara wasn't too keen on feeling either.

They looked down at their hands, their pale, lithe hands that had a score of tiny scars marring its form. It was an old reminder of the things they've done, and suddenly, looking down at them, they felt… useless.

They let this happen.

_They_ let this happen.

After everything they've been through, after believing that finally, _finally_ they were safe from the evils of the world, they've lost another child.

All this power they held in their palm, and for what? What was the purpose of it all if they couldn't protect a _single_ child? Why have the power at all if _they_ were the ones to hurt them? It was impressive really, if it wasn't so pathetic.

_Pathetic._ Their mind echoed. _Useless, pathetic whore._

Chara winced, forcing the voices away by digging their nails harshly into their palm.

Not having the child next to them... It felt... _wrong_. Their thoughts for once were their own with no niggling sensation of someone chattering away to themselves in the far corner of their mind. It was freeing, yet at the same time, it left them restless, uncomfortable, and unnerved. Their own voice and thoughts were so much darker than the child's, more painful and filled with memories they'd rather forget. The child was annoying, yes, but their kind and happy words had drowned the demons out, even if only a little.

They hadn't realised how much that had helped. How much at ease they were to have the child with them in their head and to… to not _listen_ to their own sinister thoughts for once.

A part of them resented the child for this, for making them get a taste of what it was like to not be alone with their own mind all the time, to have and know that they had someone to talk to whenever they needed it. Yet in the end they couldn't fault them too much. Afterall, their connection went both ways. This emptiness was going to affect the child's fragile heart far worse than them, they were sure.

_Oh child._ They cried as they thought of the child alone and terrified in some dark corner, bawling their eyes out for their mother, for their friends, for _them._ It was a foolish image to have, given the child's power, but the human mind _did_ like to throw common sense out the door when agitated, and right then, Chara's mind was way beyond the scope of simply 'agitated'.

They had to wonder how the child was right then. They were still unconscious from the looks of things, certainly, but were they hurt in any way? They remembered the little ice hat wearing monster -Ice Cap- doing something to the child before they were knocked out, encasing them in ice. Was it a stasis of some sort? It didn't kill the child, thank goodness, but that was like saying getting stabbed in the gut was better than getting stabbed in the head. While one was certainly less excessive than the other, neither of those situations were truly desirable. Those bastards better not have done any long lasting injury to the child. Otherwise, they were going to get a beating of their life, directly from the monarch's own two hands.

_Calm._ The logical part of their mind snapped. _You are being rash. Those monsters are merely kids. They don't know what they are doing._

Breathing hard through their nose like an angry bull, they concurred with the logic, even if they didn't want to. Those monsters, despite what they thought of them, were only doing what was right for the monsterkind. The last human soul needed for the Barrier to be broken: It was a chance that no monster could afford to miss. Those teens, if anything, were beyond brave: Facing the unknown enemy, alone and head on, possibly risking their lives for a chance to set their kind free. They should be rewarded with a medal of honour, not be whipped for their insolence.

_Yes._ Their mind echoed again. _The kid has been hurt before. You don't need to worry about them. Once they wake up, they'll be back, and any injury will be healed. In fact, you don't need to look for them at all. This is pointless. Stop this. Stop this now._

Chara almost stumbled over, their expression tight as they suddenly felt light headed.

_I… don't need to look for them?_ They repeated, but their mind was suddenly silent.

They pondered on the suggestion for a moment.

It... was a logical conclusion, there was no denying that: If the child needed to actively set up a SAVE point to return to, it was a given that they haven't made any since the attack due to their unconscious state. And any resets that they trigger at this point will take them back before the assault, maybe even before their meeting with Sans. Any effort that Chara was make right now was fundamentally pointless in face of those facts. Everything they were doing right now will, quite literally, cease to exist.

And yet…

" _So, did you have a good reason for doing that too?"_

Chara turned their head, as if to put their ear away from the echoes of their own memories. They took in a shuddering breath once more, allowing the shock of freezing air filling their lungs to distract them from their burning shame.

Certainly, it would be less effort for them to simply wait, to leave the child to either wake or die and allow time to return and reunite them. But that logic assumed that they were okay with that, that they were perfectly okay with allowing the child to find themselves alone and confused, and for them to have the courage to tell them: 'No, of course I didn't try and rescue you. Will you stop sulking and just rewind? I'm tired of waiting.'

Chara was hardly a warm person, and perhaps that _did_ sound like something that they would say. But that was before... _everything_.

They didn't really understand it, but though it'd only been two days since they'd met, Chara felt a… a _connection_ to the little one.

Perhaps it was because Frisk reminded them of the little ones in their past; Or perhaps it was some sort of residue memory from their supposed time as a ghost. Whatever the reason, Chara couldn't find it in themselves to abandon the kid. To be so heartless and cold blooded.

Not after what they've done.

They clenched their fists hard, clenched their jaw so tight their teeth were about to shatter.

No. They were going to have the child back, rescue them with their own hands. They weren't going to have it any other way. They couldn't.

They'll never forgive themselves otherwise.

_Stay put, little one._ They said as they forced their legs to march forward, stomping through the forest, following the skeleton's back. _I'm coming to get you. And please… please don't be hurt._

* * *

#  **Chapter 10**

Papyrus approached the rustic guard station with excitement, a giddy spring in his steps as his whole body bubbled with energy like a shaken can of soda.

He couldn't believe his situation: There was a newcomer in Snowdin, here, standing next to _him_ of all people.

How long has it been since he'd met someone new around the forest? How long has it been since he'd met anyone new in the _whole_ of Underground? Too long, from what he could remember (which he couldn't, because it's been _that_ long). And what coincidence it was for it to be a skeletal humanoid as well! Lose the skin and hair, and he and Chara could look like siblings. He was beyond simply excited right then; He was _ecstatic_. He was going to have to introduce Chara to his coworkers, his boss, everyone he knew, and everyone he _didn't_ know. They were all going to be so impressed, they'll instantly become his friends, he was sure of it.

Of course, he'd had to ask Chara how they felt about that first. They seemed like the type who liked things done their way and hates being caught by surprise. They were an awful stickler for someone so young, something he wondered where they got it from, along with several _other_ questions he had stored in his mind. Things like: Where did Chara come from? What monster were they? Where did they learn such dangerous combat spells? What was with the red flame thing that shrieked at him? The list just went on.

However, he knew that _now_ was not the time for questions. Chara was trying to hide it, but he was certain that they were in great distress about their missing friend. He could tell by the brooding, self-loathing frown on their face. Though he wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, even _he_ could tell that. It wasn't an expression any kid should make, and as a guard who made an oath to sacrifice his all to make sure that no frown graced the citizens of Underground, it was his duty to bring joy back into the kid once more. He was certain that with the help of the Canine units, with their excellent sense of hearing and smell, they will find Chara's friend and turn that sullen frown upside down in no time at all.

Eying the litters of dog chow crumbs and half burnt dog treats, he went straight for the call bell set up on the counter and pressed it once.

A clear, melodic _ding_ echoed through the forest, and then….

Nothing really happened.

Papyrus blinked, having expected Doggo to slowly pop his head out with a suspicious leer as he did always.

Quickly, he pressed the bell again, thinking perhaps his comrade was taking his time popping up over the counter.

The crystal clear chime pulsed through the air.

Again, there was nothing.

"HUH." Papyrus said, puzzled.

"This station appears to be empty." Chara said as they approached.

"YES IT DOES! AND THAT'S-!" He paused, "-KIND OF WEIRD!"

"Perhaps he's a sleep inside?"

With a curious frown, Papyrus leaned over the counter to give the inside of the station a good look. There were various chew toys strewn about, a mess of dog treats and boxes of matches thrown haphazardly on the lower shelves, a collection of collars, and an empty dog bed. All a typical sight for his comrade's abode, all with just one very obvious exception.

He checked the clock standing next to the bed. Still four thirty. He pulled back to a stand and began walking circle around the station, examining every nook and cranny for any sign of his coworker. When he came back, he began tapping his chin suspiciously.

"STRANGE. STRANGE! VERY VERY STRANGE!" He exclaimed with what he believed was a smooth, sly tone, much like that of a sleuth in a tv show. "DOGGO SHOULD STILL BE HERE SINCE IT'S STILL WORK HOURS. BUT HE'S _NOT_! AND THAT IS VERY STRANGE. VERY STRANGE INDEED!"

Chara walked over to the counter to check the premise themselves. Their mildly interested expression collapsed into a disgusted scowl at the messy sight. "This 'Doggo', he's not the type to ditch his work, correct?"

"OF COURSE NOT! US GUARDS ARE DILIGENT! HARD WORKING! I'VE NEVER SEEN ANYONE SLACK OFF ON THEIR JOB BEFORE!" He gave a thoughtful pause. "Well, I mean maybe with the exception of Sans, sure, BUT HE'S A SPECIAL CASE SO IT DOESN'T COUNT!"

Chara's expression showed that they weren't very impressed, which was pretty much anyone's reaction when it came to his brother unless they were talking about just how unfathomably lazy he was. "Could he have gone to patrol?"

Papyrus shook his head. "NOT AT THIS HOUR. ALL GUARDS SHOULD BE BACK FROM THEIR LAST ROUND OF PATROL AND BE LOGGING THEIR DAILY REPORTS."

"But... _you_ aren't doing that."

"YES! ERR… BUT I MEAN, I'M HELPING OUT A CITIZEN IN NEED RIGHT NOW, SO I HAVE AN EXCUSE! ...I THINK. I'M PRETTY SURE I DO." He narrowed his eyes. "UHH, MAYBE I SHOULD START JOGGING THINGS DOWN ON A NOTE, JUST IN CASE."

"I see." Chara chuckled. "Well whatever the reason, it appears that your comrade is out for a moment. A very unfortunate turn of events, if I must say."

"HMM, YEAH..." Papyrus said with a suspicious gaze over the station.

Of all the years he'd been working as a guard, he hadn't known Doggo to be the type to go 'out' during work. He didn't _need_ to. He peed on the trees nearby, had all the food and entertainment he wanted in the station. There was no feasible reason for him not to be here unless he wanted to go home early. And if he _was_ getting off work early, he was obligated to report his absence to the nearest neighbouring guard -i.e. Papyrus- so that they could schedule their patrol path around it. It made little sense that he would be gone without a trace like this.

As he had said repeatedly, this was a very strange situation indeed.

"What should we do now?" Chara asked, and he weighed his options.

"IT DEPENDS! DOGGO ISN'T THE ONLY MEMBER OF THE CANINE UNITS AROUND. WE COULD WAIT FOR A BIT TO SEE IF HE COMES BACK. _OR,_ WE COULD GO AND FIND MY OTHER COMRADES AND SEE IF THEY CAN HELP US FIRST!"

"Are they far, this other comrade?"

"NOT TOO FAR. LESSER DOG IS STATIONED JUST DOWN THE ROAD FROM HERE. ONLY A FEW MINUTES AWAY."

"Then let us move on." Chara replied immediately. "We have little time to waste, and if your other comrade is so near, I see no point in waiting about."

Papyrus paused before nodding along. Personally, he wanted to wait and see if Doggo came back soon, but he understood that Chara's priorities lay with their friend, and that was what he needed to adhere to no matter his own curiosity.

"VERY WELL, MY COMPANION! LET'S GO AND SEE WHAT THE OTHER GUARDS HAVE TO SAY!"

Chara gestured for him to walk ahead, and he did so without complaint.

As he lead on, he couldn't help but peer over his shoulder and watch the empty guard station shrinking in the distance.

* * *

A good ten minute later, the pair found themselves in the middle of the main road. It was a place that didn't have any easily distinguishable feature for any regular passerbys to note, but for any guard who have patrolled the Snowdin forest a few times, it was a point of big interest.

Papyrus walked over and knelt down near the base of one of the evergreen trees. He examined the ground there, and found that the snow was a lot thinner, as well as the base of the tree trunk being worn and slightly frozen.

He frowned.

This was definitely the spot.

So where on earth was Lesser Dog?

He stood up and looked left and right, eyeing the stretch of long, empty, snow covered path on both sides. He cupped his hands around his mouth and took in a deep breath.

"LESSIE! LESSIE! COME HERE BOY!" He shouted at the top of his lungs, not aiming his voice in any particular direction.

He dropped his hands, squinted his eyes and studied the woods, looking for any possible sign of the little sword wielding puppy running towards them with a happy smile on his face. Lesser Dog was one of the least comprehensible among the Canine Units, but he was a friendly chap who loved to play and do his best. He also had a knack for sniffing things out, a trait Papyrus was hoping to utilise to help find Chara's friend.

Of course, in order to do that, Lessie would have to be here first.

Which he wasn't.

And that was, again, kinda weird.

"LESSIE?!" He called out again, trying his best to keep the nervous squeaks out of his words.

But even with his thunderous voice, the woods remained quiet, almost eerily so.

"Is everything alright?"

Papyrus winced at the question, not liking the answer that he had in store. "UHH, NOT REALLY."

"This guard isn't here either." Chara stated more than asked.

"YES, WELL!" He began to refute, but with a shrinking voice he said, "Err.. no, he's not… B-BUT WORRY NOT! I'M SURE THAT LESSER DOG WILL BE HERE MOMENTARILY! I MEAN, I'M PRETTY SURE HE WILL BE! NYEH HEH!"

Chara, as expected, didn't appear very pleased. Though they weren't really in the 'mad' territory just yet, they were certainly in the 'confused' one. "You… said all guards will be at their station."

"Y-YES! THEY SHOULD ALL BE BACK SO THAT THEY CAN DO THE LAST BIT OF THEIR WORK AND FINISH THE DAY OFF!"

"And yet these guards are not."

Papyrus fiddled with his fingers. "UMM, MAYBE THEY'RE HELPING OUT OTHER CITIZENS? LIKE ME?"

"Both of them? At the same time? You told me this was the first time you're doing this yourself. Is it not the same for the others?"

He could only nod at that, agreeing wholeheartedly with Chara's scepticism. It really was a rare occasion that any guard would be doing over time. Guard duty in Snowdin tend to be a drag at times. It was why he'd been so excited about showing Chara around, and also why it was so odd that Doggo and Lessie weren't here either.

Where could have they gone? Papyrus racked his brain for an answer. Did they have something to do besides working? What was so important that they needed to leave without informing the others? This was the first time ever that he had such an incident and it was very curious, if not a touch worrying. It also didn't help much that he had an audience, an audience whom he promised results which he really wasn't getting. Did this _really_ need to happen when he, for once in his career, finally found a citizen in dire need to help?

He wished there was a way to speak to Doggo and Lesser Dog directly right then, ask them where they were. If they could, they wouldn't be having this problem at all right now.

_WAIT A MINUTE..._

Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in his head.

"OF COURSE! OUR RADIOS!" He snapped his fingers.

Chara flinched at the exclamation. "Your radios?"

With a wide smile, Papyrus reached for his pocket and unstrapped a hand-sized black box.

"TA-DAH!" He exclaimed. "THIS, MY DEAR COMPANION, IS A RADIO TRANSMITTER, STANDARD EQUIPMENT FOR ALL GUARDS AROUND SNOWDIN! WE'RE ONLY EVER SUPPOSED TO USE IT IN EMERGENCIES SO I NEVER GOT TO USE IT BEFORE, BUT THIS IS THE PERFECT OPPORTUNITY. I CAN TOTALLY CALL ALL THE CANINE UNITS WITHOUT HAVING TO ACTUALLY FIND THEM! I CAN'T BELIEVE I HAVEN'T THOUGHT OF THIS BEFORE."

"Why... that's perfect then." Chara appeared pleasantly surprised, fueling his excitement.

"YES! NOW, IF YOU JUST GIVE ME A MOMENT…" He switched on the device and heard it's ancient mechanics crackle to life, still functional despite the lack of use. He cleared his throat and began speaking into the receiver with a deep voice. "ATTENTION ALL GUARDS; THIS IS COOL-SKELETON USING THE EMERGENCY BROADCAST; WHAT'S YOUR CURRENT POSITIONS; OVER?"

The device crackled off, and Papyrus waited for the responses with an eager smile. Chara listened in too, crossing their arms as they kept from making any noise that could distract them.

Ten seconds passed with neither party moving or speaking.

And no other sound filled the air.

Papyrus' smile slowly faded and was replaced with one of confusion.

Then realisation hit him, followed by a quick surge of denial.

_NO…_

He tried the request again, making sure to press on the 'send' button while he was talking. "UHH, ATTENTION LESSER DOG; THIS IS COOL-SKELETON; PLEASE RETURN TO YOUR GUARD POST IMMEDIATELY; IF YOU DO I'LL GIVE YOU A PET ON THE HEAD; PLEASE CONFIRM; OVER."

Muted silence filtered through.

Papyrus frowned and checked the radio's top. Battery life was on green and the volume was set to a comfortable six out of ten. But clearly, it still wasn't working. Because of course it wouldn't. What the hell was with his luck today?

"Is it broken?" Chara asked with a raised brow.

He flicked the switch on and off again, hearing the whirling crackle echo from the speaker once more. "DOESN'T LOOK LIKE IT, BUT I'M... NOT HUNDRED PERCENT SURE. IT COULD BE BROKEN, YEAH."

"Well, that's… oddly coincidental I must say."

Papyrus agreed.

First, Doggo is missing, then Lesser Dog, and now no one was answering an _emergency_ broadcast? What were the chances of that happening all at once?

He sagged, feeling terrible at the fact that he'd let down his charge for the third time in such a short time frame.

"I know I asked this before but, what do we do now?" Chara asked in a calm tone.

Papyrus turned to them with a hard frown, thinking. He wanted give a different answer than 'Let's go see the other guards!' this time, but without the Canine Unit's help, he himself had no skill or informant to help out Chara with their search.

"UHH, DO YOU WANT TO WAIT HERE FOR A BIT?" He asked with a hopeful smile. "LESSIE SOMETIMES GET DISTRACTED AND TAKE A BIT TO COME BACK TO HIS POST. HE USUALLY COMES RUNNING BACK WHEN ANYONE CALLS HIM THOUGH, EVEN FROM THE OTHER END OF THE FOREST. SO HE COULD BE HERE IN A FEW MINUTE."

"And if he's not?" Chara said, obviously taking the pessimistic side.

"THEN UHH… WE CAN MOVE ON TO THE NEXT GUARD IN THE VICINITY! THEY CAN'T _ALL_ NOT BE IN THEIR POSTS, RIGHT?"

They gave a miffed frown. "I don't wish to sound rude but I must admit, I am not a big fan of waiting. It seems like such a useless thing to do."

"HEY, WAITING ISN'T USELESS! IT MEANS YOU'RE BEING PATIENT! YOU'RE BIDING TIME FOR THE PERFECT MOMENT! IT'S A GOOD THING TO DO SOMETIMES."

"Ugh, sounds like something the child might say."

"IS… THAT A GOOD THING THEN?"

Rolling their eyes, Chara didn't answer, and instead walked over to a nearby tree and leaned their back against it with their arms crossed. Papyrus walked over too, taking position nearby Chara, standing on his own, tall and vigilant like a good guard. If he wasn't able to help out much in the search itself, the least he could do was to protect them from further harm.

Several minutes passed, both party pretty much standing utterly still in their place, waiting for something that they had no clue if was ever coming and when. Papyrus kept his gaze vigilantly surveying the woods for his comrade, but more occasionally than not, he would shift to look over at Chara and see how they were doing. They hadn't appeared too pleased to be waiting since the beginning, but as time went by, their annoyed frown had slowly dissolved into boredom, which then turned into something… sadder, sorrowful. The sight of it made him frown as well, made the sinking sense of inadequacy inside him double by the second. He was starting to think he needed to do something quickly before he drowned in all this negativity.

Guards were supposed to protect the smiles of the citizen. He'd failed to help Chara in any meaningful way so far, he was _not_ going to fail in this.

"UMM, HEY!" He began with a wide smile, not entirely sure where he was going with this. "W… YOU KNOW WHAT I REALLY WANTED TO ASK THIS WHOLE TIME? WHA-UHH, W-WHAT'S YOUR FAVOURITE… FOOD? YEAH! YOUR FAVOURITE FOOD!"

There was a moment of pause, then, Chara slowly turned their head up with a quirked brow.

"My favourite food." They deadpanned. "Is there a reason why you're bringing this up?"

"W-WELL," He quickly scratched his head. "I PROMISED YOU DINNER AFTER ALL THIS IS OVER, DIDN'T I? I-I'LL NEED TO KNOW IF YOU DON'T LIKE ANY CERTAIN INGREDIENT! I MEAN, WHAT IF YOU'RE ALLERGIC TO NUTS? THAT'LL BE TERRIBLE!"

Chara's stare continued, as though they were trying to gauge if he was being serious or not. "I'm sorry, sir, but must we speak of this now? I'm not sure if I will be able to… _focus_ on such a mundane subject with all that's going on."

That was an expected answer, but Papyrus wasn't about to give up. He breathed in deep and puffed out his chest, forcing in himself some bravado. "WHICH IS ABSOLUTELY WHY WE SHOULD HAVE THIS CONVERSATION NOW! I... FEEL THAT YOU'RE ALL WOUND UP RIGHT NOW, LIKE A JACK IN A BOX WITH THE LID NAILED SHUT! YOU NEED TO LET IT ALL OUT, AND CALM YOUR NERVES A BIT. IT'S THE FIRST THING THEY TEACH US AT GUARD SCHOOL: ALWAYS KEEP YOUR HEAD COOL; ALWAYS KEEP YOURSELF RELAXED. ONE INSTANT OF RASH ACTION CAN DECIDE THE VICTOR, SO MAKE SURE THAT THAT PERSON IS YOU."

Chara opened their mouth as if to retort but no words came out before they snapped it back shut.

Gazing into their blood red eyes, Papyrus saw the gears in their head click and turn, calculating, contemplating. He braced himself, holding his breath and backing up while narrowing his eyes as though he was expecting a physical explosion of some sort.

Finally, Chara breathed in deep, and let out a conceding sigh. "Very well." They said, making Papyrus mirror their sigh with one of relief. "You wish to talk food? Let us talk food."

"EXCELLENT!" He clapped happily. At least with this he could distract them from their troubles for awhile. "THEN UHH, LET'S START WITH THE BASICS, SHALL WE?"

"If we must."

"COOL!" He said, then searched his brain for what to say next. What on earth was the 'basics' when asking a person about their favourite food? "RIGHT! IS UHH, THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU CAN'T EAT? LIKE MEAT, OR CHEESE FOR EXAMPLE? IT'LL BE REALLY SAD IF I COOKED YOU SOMETHING YOU CAN'T EAT!"

Chara sighed once more, long and tired, as if they were coming to terms with the fact that, yes, they _were_ about to discuss food despite the situation. "I'm... not aware of any allergies that I have, and I'm not exactly picky with my food either. I can eat anything." They said, then added in a mumble, "if the situation is right."

"RIGHT. A VERY NORMAL THING TO SAY I THINK," Papyrus nodded. "BUT I ALSO KNOW PEOPLE SAY THAT JUST TO BE POLITE! EVERYONE HAS SOMETHING THAT THEY PREFER NOT TO HAVE ON THEIR PLATE, SO GO ON, YOU CAN TELL ME."

"No, really I honestly don't mind. Anything you cook will be quite lovely I'm sure." Chara shrugged nonchalantly, not really considering the question.

Papyrus huffed. "ALRIGHT, HOW ABOUT I CHANGE THE QUESTION AROUND A BIT THEN? WHAT FOOD _DO_ YOU LIKE? WHAT'S THE FOOD THAT YOU FIND YOURSELF EATING THE MOST OFTEN?"

Chara's expression turned sour and they grumbled something under their breath. Papyrus thought he'd heard them say "Do live rats and maggots count?", but that couldn't have been right.

"I... suppose I have a fondness for chocolate and pastries with chocolates in them." They said more clearly.

"AH, A BIT OF A SWEET TOOTH, EH?" He wagged his 'brows'.

They smirked at his antics, a small victory point for the guard. "Just for chocolates, perhaps. But other than that I do like my meat. Give me a plate of bangers and mash and I will murder it swift."

"MEAT, EH? THOSE ARE HARD TO COME BY AROUND HERE. HMM." He tapped his chin before snapping his fingers. "WHAT ABOUT SUSHI? DO YOU LIKE THAT?"

Chara's smirk fell into a perplexed frown. "S.. Soo shee?" They butchered the word. "I'm sorry, is that a foreign dish? I believe I've never heard of it before."

"NYEH HEH! NEVER HEARD OF SUSHI! THAT'S A GOOD ONE! NYEH HEH HEH HEH!" Papyrus cracked up, guffawing out loud at the joke.

It only took him a minute to realise that the kid wasn't laughing along.

His laughter slowly trailed off, and soon he was staring down at them in confusion. "WAIT, YOU'RE SERIOUS?"

Chara raised a brow, as if daring him to guess.

Papyrus blinked, backing up in mild surprise. "WOW." He said. "I DON'T THINK I'VE EVER MET ANYONE WHO DOESN'T KNOW WHAT SUSHI IS."

"Well you have now. Are you going to tell me what it is, or are you going to laugh like a maniac again?"

He chuckled, a hint of blush colouring his cheekbone. "WELL, I MEAN, SUSHI IS FISH!"

Chara frowned. "... _And_?"

"THAT'S IT! AND RICE, I GUESS, BUT IT'S PRETTY MUCH JUST FISH." Papyrus scratched his head, never having explained what a sushi to another person before.

"Is it any particular kind of fish?"

"NOPE! JUST... EDIBLE FISH IN GENERAL."

"Why does it need its own name if it's just fish? Why not call it 'fish'?"

"AH, BECAUSE IT'S RAW!"

" _Raw_ fish?" Chara scrunched their face in disgust. "Ew."

Papyrus did a double take. "WHAT?! 'EW'?! BUT SUSHI IS GREAT!"

"'Great'?" Chara scoffed. "'Dangerous' more like. Eating raw is… _desperate._ You shouldn't do it if you can avoid it. You could get sick from it. You could die!"

"B-BUT IT'S CULTURE! IT'S CLASSY AND SOPHISTICATED! IT'S JAPANESE!"

" _Japanese_?" If possible, Chara's disgust seem to double. "What is it with this age and the bloody Japanese? What, did they start another war and _win_ this time?"

Papyrus was taken aback by the acid in their tone. "UUH, DO YOU HAVE SOMETHING AGAINST THE JAPANESE?"

"Of course not, no." They said at first. "Well… Okay, maybe. I mean, I don't really know. I've never met one myself but the things I hear about them aren't exactly pleasant."

"WELL, THAT'S UNFORTUNATE! I NEVER MET ONE MYSELF EITHER, BUT THEY SEEMED LIKE GOOD PEOPLE! FOR HUMANS I MEAN! THOSE GIANT ROBOTS OF THEIRS THAT FIGHTS ALIENS FROM ANOTHER DIMENSION? COOLEST. THING. EVER."

There was a very long pause from the kid, almost as though they'd been frozen stiff for a moment. Papyrus quirked his eye socket and was about to ask what was wrong when they slowly began turning their head up at him. When they finally revealed their face, which was a mask of complete and utter shock, their eyes were almost making a complete circle. "... I'm sorry, the _what?"_

"UHH, WHAT 'WHAT'?" Papyrus asked, confused.

"R-robots? What do you mean by that? What robots?" They stuttered, their face oddly pale.

He shrugged. "YOU KNOW, LIKE THOSE GIANT MACHINES THEY HAVE IN A SHAPE OF A PERSON? OR ANIMALS, I GUESS. THREE OR SO OF THEM COMBINE INTO A GIANT SUPER ROBOT THAT HAS ROCKET PUNCHES AND STUFF. JAPAN HAS LIKE… ELEVEN OF THEM OF SOMETHING."

"Eleven?!" Chara screeched. "Wh-where did they get such a thing? And so many of them?"

"I'M PRETTY SURE THEY BUILT IT THEMSELVES."

If possible, Chara became even more pale than before, and that's saying something for a kid already as pale as them. And was that sweat forming on their forehead?

"Wha-?! Bu-! Th-that's impossible! Japan is a radioactive ashfield! They can't possibly have the resources to build such a thing!" They placed a palm over their forehead. "Wait. Wait a minute. Does this mean that America has them as well? Do Germany?" They gasped in horror. "Oh my Lord. Are they back? You said alien monsters from another dimension. Are those their doings? Are they back? Tell me!"

Papyrus backed up, feeling like he said something he shouldn't have. "UHH, WHO ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?"

"Who am I talking about? The Nazis, of course!" Chara yelled with an equal amount of anger and fear. "I'm asking if the Nazis have come back! Do they have robots too? Did they finally succeed in their magical-science bullcrap? Is that how they brought the aliens to our world? Have they invaded anyone? Is there another war? Do America have robots fighting back?! Answer me! ANSWER ME NOW!"

"NYEEH!" Papyrus cried, backing up as Chara stomped over to him like an enraged ox. "OKAY, I THINK UHH, WE'VE DERAILED FROM THE MAIN POINT OF THE CONVERSATION. LET'S JUST… GO BACK TO TALK ABOUT FOOD WHY DON'T WE?"

" _Food_?" Chara said, aghast. "You think I can talk about _food_ when I have a potential world war going on?" They took in a shuddering breath. "I… I need to talk to the child. They'll know more about this. I need to ask them things, I need to know _right now_ , and, and…." They stopped. "And of course they are not here."

Chara's mood shifted faster than a bucket of water being poured over a fire, their flash of panic doused into a solemn distress in a single instant. Their whole body seemed to sag and Papyrus winced when he saw their red eyes well up with tears. He hurried to kneel down besides them.

"HEY NOW, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT THIS. WE'RE GONNA FIND YOUR FRIEND, WITHOUT A DOUBT. NO CRYING HERE, OKAY?"

The kid bit their lips and breathed in long and hard several times. "Yes. Yes, of course. I apologise. It's just…. Very difficult, you must understand."

"YEAH OF COURSE I DO," Papyrus patted their shoulder. "AND NO ONE CAN BLAME YOU FOR THAT. TAKE AS MUCH AS TIME YOU NEED. I'M RIGHT HERE WHEN YOU NEED ME."

"Th.. thank you."

Chara breathed in a few more times, and held it, as though trying to will their tears away. After a few seconds of holding, they finally breathed out, and began wiping their eyes of tears. Then, much to his surprise, they started laughing.

Papyrus tilted his head, not seeing what they found so funny. "UMM, YOU OKAY?"

"Oh, goodness." They chuckled. "I apologise. I just… I just found it very strange -a bit funny, really- that I'm so… _hysterical._ Andabout someone I barely know too."

Papyrus frowned, still confused. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN? AREN'T THEY YOUR FRIEND?"

"Friend?" Chara spat the word. "You know they keep on calling me that. I'm not sure what on earth is going in their head because I sure haven't _done_ anything to be worthy of that title. I've... barely known them for two days, two days I've been particularly cruel to them to. Hardly a time nor the scenario to establish friendship, no?"

_Two days?_ That surprised Papyrus. From the way that they'd been so distressed, he'd thought they and the child have known each other for years. "BUT DO YOU THINK THEY'RE YOUR FRIEND?"

At that question, Chara's crooked smile vanished.

They were quiet for a long time.

"I'm... not sure." They said, their voice quiet and uncertain. It appeared as though they really didn't know.

"YOU OBVIOUSLY CARE ABOUT THEM THOUGH."

"Care?" Chara scoffed. "I don't think that's it, really."

Papyrus tilted his head. "WHY DO YOU SAY THAT?"

"I'm just... _not_ the caring type, you know?"

Now it was his turn to laugh. "WELL THAT'S… SILLY! YOU WENT ABSOLUTELY BERSERK WHEN YOU FOUND OUT YOUR FRIEND WAS GONE. YOU WOULDN'T BE DOING THAT IF YOU DIDN'T CARE FOR THEM, RIGHT? FROM WHAT I CAN TELL, YOUR FRIEND IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO YOU!"

"It seems like it, yes, but it's a bit… different under the surface." Chara shook their head. "Besides, I find them more annoying than anything. I wanted them gone when we first met. I hated the fact that they were here."

"BUT YOU THINK DIFFERENTLY NOW, RIGHT?"

Chara scoffed. "Because they clung onto me like a bad flu. They insisted on us being together, no matter how much I rejected them, and I just… I don't know. I gave up." They sighed. "So, yes, I do think differently now, I suppose."

"AND... DO YOU REGRET THAT DECISION?" Papyrus asked after some thought, and it triggered another bout of silence from the kid.

They didn't answer, not even after several seconds of wait. They just stared at the snowy ground, brows drawn into a thoughtful scowl.

It took a minute to realise this, but it dawned on Papyrus that no answer was coming, not right now, and probably not for a long time. It was a question that Chara themselves was going to have to ponder on on their own. And hence, he decided to stand back, return to searching the woods for the signs of his comrade.

He gave the kid all the space and time in the world to think.

* * *

Did they regret their decision?

Chara was in deep thought, their head ringing with the question, repeating it over and over.

Did they regret their decision?

Did they regret stop trying to push the child away so much?

After all that happened on the surface world, Chara told themselves never to latch onto a little one again. They've tasted the bitter end of betrayal so many times, inflicted the same pain back to so many others. Humanity, the ones they met and the one they had inside themselves, were so poisonous they wanted nothing to do with it ever again.

But then came the child, so happy and innocent and so… determined.

The little ones they met before had been always dependent on them, little lost lambs that needed their guidance, as useless as it so often proved to be. But Frisk was so sure of the things they did, sure that they could accomplish all these ridiculous ideas that they had in their little mind and had the drive to put their words into action. Certainly, they were awfully clingy, but if they were left alone, Chara was sure that they could accomplish so much. It surprised Chara to see, in a very good way. It was rather charming, and for the first time in a while, they felt that perhaps they could even depend on the child instead.

So did they regret their decision?

Well, the answer was not a 'no' at this point, but then they weren't considering all the shit they'd done to the child either.

All these troubles that Frisk was going through, Chara was the cause. All of it was. And it kind of made them think: 'Would it be better if they didn't exist?' The child wanted them to be together so badly, but the sheer amount of pain and trial that they were going through because of Chara, was it all worth it?

They didn't have an answer.

They weren't even sure if they wanted the answer to be a 'yes' or a 'no'.

And they weren't going to have the answer any time soon.

For now, they had a goal to achieve: They had to find the child and that was all that mattered. All these questions they had, it could come later.

Much, _much_ later.

"I… think we've waited long enough here, no?" They sighed. "Let us move on to the next guard post. Hopefully there will be someone there this time. I don't wish to give those hooligans any more time to do whatever it is they do if we could hel-"" _Arf!_ "

They stopped and blinked.

They looked up, first to Papyrus, then to the woods when they realised the skeleton was just as startled by the sound as they.

_What on earth?_ They thought as they surveyed woods with squinted eyes.

At first they only saw a myriad of dead black trees, a sight they were slowly beginning to get accustomed to, as well as be very bored by. But then, they saw it: a ball of pure white that was only slightly lighter than the snow beneath their feet, hopping and bouncing between the trees as it got closer and closer to them in an admittedly alarming rate.

They turned to the skeleton to ask what it was, and found him with a smile as bright as the sun.

"NYAH-HA!" He exclaimed in joy. "AND SO THE ROYAL GUARD PULLS THROUGH, JUST AS I HAVE BELIEVED!" He turned to them, his face about to burst with joy. "THAT, MY DEAR COMPANION, IS LESSIE! I TOLD YOU HE'LL COME RUNNING ACROSS HALF THE FOREST IF YOU CALL HIM. MAKE SURE TO GIVE HIM A PET WHEN HE ARRIVES, OKAY? IT'LL INSTANTLY PUT YOU ON HIS GOOD LIST AND MAKE IT EASIER TO GET HIM TO HELP YOU!"

With barely a nod, Chara looked back at the trees. The ball of white was much closer now, giving away its identity as a little white puppy running on his fours, his mouth open wide in a happy smile with a long red tongue flopping about even in this cold.

In no time the puppy arrived to his destination: Papyrus, and began hopping and jumping on Papyrus in a friendly greeting.

" _Arf! Arf!"_ The little puppy squeaked.

"HELLO THERE, MY GOOD COMRADE! THANK YOU FOR COMING ON SUCH SHORT NOTICE, THOUGH YOU REALLY SHOULD HAVE BEEN HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE. WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? YOU MADE ME LOOK BAD IN FRONT OF A GUEST!"

" _Arf arf!"_ He squeaked again in the same happy manner, completely oblivious to the half scolding he was receiving.

Chara placed a hand over their mouth, unable to contain the gasp that came at the sight.

_Oh my lord._ They thought with horror. _He's so cute._

Despite being a dog, Lessie was wearing a full squire armour more suited for a humanoid, complete with a shield and a sword strapped to his back, both bearing the insignia of the Royal Crest. It was as though someone took the puppy and gave him a guard costume to wear for Halloween. It was the definition of adorable, and Chara was filled with an immense urge to pet the thing.

Of course there was another part of their mind that was being very skeptical of Lessie. Papyrus had informed them that the Canine Units were part of the Royal Guard, and Lessie was… a _puppy._ There was something very wrong about those two facts playing with each other. It was either Papyrus was lying to them about the Canine Units being a Royal Guard, or the standard for what constituted as a Royal Guard was abysmally simple where a _puppy_ can join it if he wanted to. Both possibilities were farfetched but equally disturbing for their own rights.

"GOOD BOY, LESSIE! GOOD BOY!" Papyrus said as he pet Lessie who yipped happily.

Doing their best to hide their blush at the adorable sight, Chara cleared their throat to gain the skeleton's attention.

He turned to them. "OH! SORRY! I FORGET HOW ENERGETIC LESSIE CAN BE WHEN HE'S EXCITED ABOUT THINGS."

Chara smiled. "It is no problem, but if you could introduce us?"

"OF COURSE! UMM, DOWN BOY! DOWN!"

Lessie stopped his jumping and sat down in the snow.

"RIGHT. AS YOU KNOW, THIS IS MY COWORKER LESSER DOG! LESSIE FOR SHORT! LESSIE," The puppy barked in response. "THIS IS CHARA! A CITIZEN WHO IS IN NEED OF OUR HELP! I CALLED YOU HERE BECAUSE I THINK YOUR DOGGY SENSES WILL BE ABLE TO HELP THEM GREATLY! GO SAY HELLO!"

The puppy turned to Chara, as if noticing them for the first time.

With a happy yip, he stood up on his fours and began bounding towards them with the same overflowing energy as they did with Papyrus. Chara put on a friendly smile for him and braced themselves for an impact with the dog that was actually about as large as they were upon closer look.

Then, the moment their eyes met, the puppy came to an immediate halt.

His wagging tail dropped, his happy tongue snaking back into his mouth with his jaw snapping shut after it. He was suddenly so still, it was as though someone put a freezing spell on him, leaving him permanently staring at Chara with his beady black eyes. There was a brief flash of confusion passing through, followed by a several moments where those eyes studying Chara as though they were a statue on display, then, there was a moment of realisation, and it was this that triggered Chara's realisation on what the dog had been doing.

Their smile vanished, their soft eyes turning needle sharp as they glowered at the dog.

Without warning, the air became tight, constricting like a snake around their throat.

This continued for the next few seconds, making Papyrus rightfully confused.

"UHH, GUYS? WHAT'S GOING ON?" He asked, but neither Chara or Lessie had a moment to spare to provide him with the answers.

Chara held their arms firmly by their side, their hands open, ready for anything. And Lessie, he took a slow step back, lining all of his four paws in a straight line, hiding what direction he would spring to next from their opponent. From Chara.

A frozen second went by.

Then, everything erupted.

Lessie leapt forward, twisted his forelegs around and unsheathed his weapons in a battle. In the same moment, Chara's one hand bursted into a blue magic blade while the other pulled out a shining metal knife from their back.

The two of them clashed in the middle, Chara raising both of their blades in defense while Lessie slammed into them in a shielded charge.

As the surprisingly heavy weight of the impact flung Chara back, the one thought that came to their mind was: _Bloody hell._

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: And that was it. Did that last part seem rushed to you? I feel that it was, but the grass is green, sky is blue and I always think everything I write is rushed. So please leave a review!**
> 
> **As I've said in the opening log, I've got the entire ACT 2 planned out now, with each future chapters outlined from start to finish. It should help me write out the story a lot faster, knowing what I'm going to write in the future. It's something I should have done from the beginning but I never committed to it.**
> 
> **I know I said before that I wasn't going to give you guys a date for the next chapter as I didn't know how it will turn out, but without that deadline, I feel that I'm hurting myself by being too lenient. So I'm going to say this right now:**
> 
> **The next chapter will be up in two weeks.**
> 
> **That's a scary thing to say for someone like me, but I believe that that fear will help me push this thing out along. I'll never be a proper writer without learning to meet deadlines, so that's what I'm doing.**
> 
> **I hope you enjoyed, and... I guess you'll see me in two weeks! ... Hopefully.**
> 
> **Ideas abandoned for this chapter: Chara singing Mr Sandman, Papyrus singing Mr Sandman(and failing), Papyrus throwing Chara in the air like a cannon ball. Megalovania.**
> 
> **Up next: Chara gets into trouble. A few of them.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Well, on the downside, I'm a week late. On the upside, I'm not FIVE MONTHS late. So I guess you could say I'm mildly happy with the situation right now. I do apologise for it nonetheless.**
> 
> **I actually had a chapter done in the first week, but while I was editing I did the fight sequence over about four times which is the ONLY reason this took so long. I don't think I've barely edited the other scenes.**
> 
> **Anyway, not much else to say here, so on with the show~**
> 
> * * *

"No… no…. no… Magic fingers? What is… oh. OH. Umm… That's very nice, but that's... not actually magic."

Alphys took in a patient breath and paused her search through the human files. She was talking to herself again, a sure sign that she was stressed out. She leaned back on her chair, stretching her stiff shoulders and back just for a moment. Her vertebrae bent with a series of satisfying pops, sending shivers down from the base of her neck down to the tip of her tail.

With a half yawn, she tapped at her keyboard and watched the number pop up at the corner.

Three thousand two hundred and fifty three. The need to slam her forehead against the keyboard hit her like a hot summer gust.

The search for a human with any magic potential was far more... _arduous_ than she first anticipated. The human database wasn't as organised as she thought, at least not in terms of their magical prowess. If she'd been looking for informations on their SOUL it would have been a different story, but as it stood now, here she was, stuck with manually reading through the human entries one by one. She did her best to narrow the list down but the numbers only went down to about three thousand and seven hundred. That's three thousand and seven hundred massive essays that she had to read through, and without any accompanying artwork (preferably japanese including high school girls and zany superpowers) this task was proving to be a grueling grind equivalent to training a MMORPG character to level 100 by only killing level 1 rabbits.

Nevertheless, she was obligated to do her job, and jobs often came as a mixed bag of things you enjoy and things you don't. She was just going to have to bite her lips and push through.

_Okay. Entry #140: Pond, Margaret. Kind. Faint hearted... No magic potential._

Of course even without looking through the entries, it was a given that humans _did_ have magic at some point in their history, but that was almost a millennia ago now. From what they understood, humans have become so heavily reliant on technology that they now believe that magic is a myth, an ability believed only in fantasies of children and the deranged. Though a sad state of affair in her opinion, it was precisely this fact that was pushing her to look into this matter. Because as mind numbing grind of a task this was, Alphys understood why Sans wanted her to do this: That human -the one named Chara- was an anomaly.

_Entry #167: Smith, Victor. Tall. Odd accent. Friendly…. No magic potential._

How did that kid have magic? How could that one human be so in tuned with themselves that they could cast coloured combat spells, fire spells and healing spells back to back? There's only few monsters in the world that can learn so many types of magic and they spent years to master it all. Was it a human thing? Did it have something to do with their magic being able to move about on its own?

Alphys didn't like it. There was something primal that surged in her every time thought of the kid. She got the chills down her spine every time she looked at those blood red eyes, staring at everything with cold logic and calculation. But what choice did she have? She promised Sans that she would look into it, and that's what she was going to do, even if she wasn't entirely sure what he was planning at this point. She was being a good friend. It had nothing to do with her being scared of angering him at all. No siree.

_Entry #198: undefined, Vanessa. Singer… "Magical voice", but no actual magic potential._

She did wonder why he asked her not to tell anyone, though. He seemed to want things done under the table for some reason, and she couldn't imagine why. A pair of humans was in Underground, the final pieces of the puzzle. It was a historical event. Everyone should be getting in on it so that they can all get back to the surface, combine their power to… to _kill_ the children as quickly as they could. Beat, cut and burn them until the life snuffed out of their wide, hopeful eyes. They've already done it six times. What was two more?

Alphys sagged, her eyes suddenly becoming harrowed at the thought. The memories.

The bodies were always brought to her first so that she could extract the dying soul before it disappeared. She threw up the first time she saw it: the red, purple and blue form of a human on a cold metal bed, their eyes closed, little hands and feet unmoving. A child. A dead child. It was the most horrifying thing she'd seen in her life. It got easier with each one, but never enough that she didn't feel sick for days after.

And now she'll have to do it again, to two of them at once, a pair of friends no less.

She just hoped that the two would die together.

At least that way, they'll have someone to hold in their dying moment.

 _Stop._ She scolded herself, taking in a shuddering breath. _Don't pity them. They're the enemy. We have to do this. It's not like you're going to find the solution to the barrier without their SOULs anytime soon, right?_

Right.

It didn't matter in the end. The kids were going to… to die. And the monsters were going to be free. It was a joyous event. It was happy. It was glorious. It was... inevitable.

Alphys tore her gaze from her screen and sighed, her motivation drained. She didn't think she could look at another human report.

_I should just fudge something up. Does Sans really care? They're gonna die anyway, right?_

Leaning back she tapped the page down button on the keyboard several times with extra force in frustration.

_Entry #198: Smith, John. Teacher… No magic potential._

Tap.

_Entry #200: Chang, undefined... Miner… No magic potential._

TAP _._

_Entry #210: Jenner, Luke… No magic potential._

_TAP_.

_Entry #502: undefined, Charlotte_ _…_

_AuthError?_

Her fingers stopped just over the keyboard.

Alphys gazed at the screen, her eyes lingering on the last entry, brows furrowing as she skimmed line over and over. She quickly pulled off her glasses, rubbed it for grimes and put it back on. The entry remained the same.

She blinked.

It... was an authorization error.

For _her?_

She pulled her chair closer to the desk and drummed at the keyboard. She pressed the return key, then blinked at the message that appeared.

_> > human_magic_reports[current_index].__dict___  
_Uncaught Exception: AuthError_  
_You do not have the correct permission to access this entry!_  
_Please log in as a correct user type or contact the database manager for more information._

Don't have the correct permission?

Contact the database manager?

She _WAS_ the database manager. She had _all_ of the permissions. If she didn't, who the hell would? The previous owner? Well good luck with that, the previous owner was… _Umm..._

What happened to the previous owner?

She shook her head. That wasn't important right now.

She began furiously typing out a command.

_> > which_permission(human_magic_reports[current_index])_  
_Uncaught Exception: AuthError_

_> > get_permission(human_magic_reports[current_index])_  
_Uncaught Exception: AuthError_

_> > change_permission(human_magic_reports[current_index], 'admin')_  
_Uncaught Exception: AuthError_

Alphys tapped her chin, and soon began typing once more. It took her ten minutes or so to come up with, but eventually she managed to pull out a different response.

_> > sudo accessHumanEntry.sh human_magic_reports.json -index=502 -apply= -f_  
_WARNING: You are about to access the Royal Archive. Be aware that accessing these data without permission is a treason and can be punishable by imprisonment of up to ten years._

_Continue?_  
_Yes/No:_

Alphys paused again, even more confused.

Why would a human report be locked behind the Royal Archives?

The warning on the screen weren't just words either. She knew for a fact that the act of treason acquires one the most severe of punishment the King was willing to give. She technically didn't have the correct permissions, so if she ever continued on here, she _would_ be eligible for the said punishment.

… But then again, this _was_ a bit of an emergency situation, what with there being a human around the Kingdom and all. She was sure if she spoke to Asgore about it nicely, he'll let her go.

Probabily.

She peered over to her left, to her right, making sure that there wasn't anyone watching her over her shoulders.

Then, with a slow, butterfly flutter of a movement, she carefully pressed on the keyboards to type a quick answer.

" _ **Yes"**_

She pressed the return key.

_Accessing..._  
_\- Welcome to the Royal Archives -_

_Entry #502: Gardner, Charlotte_. _Landed in 1954…_

Her eyes ran through the data, and slowly, they began to widen in shock.

* * *

#  **Chapter 11**

Chara landed on their feet, their arms trembling from the unexpected strength behind the puppy's attack.

They didn't understand how they kept on getting into these situations: these battles with monsters whom they should be allies with, their own people whom they will be ruling over in the future. It was only last week for them that they were out and about Waterfall with Asriel, sharing easy hellos with the people who were all so overjoyed to see them they couldn't stop providing compliments and gifts. Now here they were, in yet another fight with a monster, a royal guard no less. It was such a jarring change in reception, they couldn't help but laugh. They supposed it was their fault for being a member of the Kingdom's sworn enemy themselves. It was an unusual circumstance after all.

_Actually, I'm in a knife fight with a bloody dog right now. So that's probably weirder._

They raised their blades above their head, grunting when Lessie's sword crashed down upon them with a loud clang. They tried to kick in an attempt to trip their opponent, but Lessie threw a shield bash from the side first. They jumped back, avoiding the wall of steel that would have left them with a nasty broken bone had it met its mark.

Their feet touched the ground and they immediately blocked another sword strike from the side, a backwards strike this time, and grunted as their feet slid a bit across the snow. Lessie had used the momentum of his missed shield bash to spin around and give his next attack extra strength. Now he followed it up by smashing his shield into his own blocked sword, slamming enough force to throw Chara completely off balance.

They stumbled to the side, then trip over, landing flat on their stomach.

Lessie hugged his sword and shield close to his chest and marched towards them without a moment's pause, his armour clanking in a steady beat with each step.

Chara growled and tried to push themselves up, but heard the clanking stop right behind them, followed by a sound of sword whipping through the air.

They gripped a handful of snow and dirt and threw it at Lessie's face. He blocked it by hiding behind his massive shield, but it caused a long enough distraction. Chara used the momentum of their throw to roll away and stand up at the same time.

When all was said and done, the two parties stood a good distance away from each other, Chara with their breath heavy and glaring while Lessie stood with his shield held high up, his long tongue still flopped out in a doggy smile as if he was expecting a snack to be thrown his way any second. Chara didn't know if they were impressed or furious.

On one side, the pup -despite his dumb little smile and earlier playful behaviour- was an incredibly efficient soldier. His attack routines were on a bit of a stiff side perhaps, but there was skill behind that stupid face. He was indeed worthy of being called a Royal Guard.

On the other hand, they were fighting a bloody mutt _. And_ they were actually getting pushed back. It felt insulting, even if it _was_ a Royal Guard they were fighting.

 _Ha. The Royal Guard._ Chara might have smirked. This was the first time they were fighting a full blown Guard instead of a trainee, something they'd been begging their mother to do for weeks. Yet right now, they didn't feel the excitement that they'd expected from this battle. All they could think of was the little one who out there waiting for them, cold and alone. They didn't have the leisure to indulge in a fight. They needed to finish this right now.

They bent their knee, raised their blades up to their face height, and in response Lessie beat his sword against his shield twice in quick succession.

" _Arf!"_ He squeaked, then prepared himself in an offensive pose, despite clearly seeing that Chara prepared for an offensive first.

It was an insult, Chara recognised with a sneer. He was saying that he could take them on, no matter what strategy they took.

 _Such insolence._ Chara hissed in their mind. This dog was going to learn a valuable lesson in humility.

"WHOA, OKAY! TIMEOUT! EVERYBODY TIMEOUT!"

Chara nearly fell over with start, their magic blade shattering away as their concentration was shot. They looked up and frowned when they saw Papyrus standing between them and Lessie with barely any way of protecting himself besides his words.

It was a suicidal move if Chara ever saw one. One never placed oneself between two warriors in midst of combat unless they expected to brave a strike from both sides at once. To his credit, Papyrus did appear rightfully pissed. With his hands on his hips and his tall frame standing up with back straight, he looked like a chastising mother. " _WHAT_ HAS GOTTEN INTO YOU TWO? PUT THOSE THINGS AWAY, YOU CAN SERIOUSLY HURT SOMEONE!"

Oh yeah, definitely a chastising mother. "Papyrus, if I may-"

"A MOMENT, MY COMPANION!" He silenced them with a raised palm. " _I_ WILL HANDLE THIS!" He turned to the pup first. "BAD LESSIE! BAD DOG!" He scolded, causing Lessie to let out a piteous whine. The transition from a professional soldier to an ordinary household pet was so quick that it gave Chara a mental whiplash. "CHARA HERE IS A CITIZEN! YOU CAN'T ATTACK A CITIZEN!"

Lessie tilted his head, his confusion as clear as day.

Papyrus sighed and tried again. "THIS," He began slowly, gesturing to them, "IS CHARA. CHARA IS A FRIEND. NO ATTACKING CHARA. NO. ATTACK. CHARA."

" _Aroo_?" Lessie said and Papyrus nodded.

"THAT'S RIGHT. CHARA IS FRIEND. ATTACKING IS NOT FOR FRIENDS. _NOT_ FOR _FRIENDS_."

The pup barked and yipped, his gaze bouncing back and forth between the human and Papyrus several times. Then, surprisingly enough, he began lowering his shield, albeit with movement filled with uncertainty.

Chara lowered their blades too. Though they still wanted to punish the mutt, they were certain the fight between them will be a bit more challenging than they were imagining. Papyrus' intervention was a chance they couldn't afford to miss if they wished to get out of this unscathed. They just hoped that their own show of pacifism will entice the pup to do the same.

It did. And Lessie lowered his weapons a bit faster, almost to a point of completely dropping them.

"YES!" Papyrus smiled, unknowingly echoing Chara's own thoughts. "GOOD DOG, LESSIE!" -Lessie's tail began wagging at the compliment and Chara couldn't help but smirk.- "REMEMBER: ATTACKING IS NOT FOR FRIENDS; ATTACKING IS FOR HUMANS! WE ATTACK HUMANS! OKAY?"

Chara's smirk vanished.

Lessie tilted his head then barked as his tail wagged faster. " _Arf!"_ He held his weapons up, ready for battle.

Chara slapped a hand over their face.

"GOOD! I'M GLAD YOU UNDERSTAND. NOW, LET'S GO OVER THERE AND APOLOGISE FOR-"

Lessie was off in an instant, going around Papyrus in two easy hops and charging for Chara without hesitation.

"WHAT THE-? LESSIE!"

"Oh for the love of-"

Chara skipped to the side to avoid the shield charge and immediately parried Lessie's sword away by swinging their dagger right into the slash. With a loud clang, the two's arm flung back from one another, forcing both wielders to jerk back and regain control of their trembling weapons.

Chara growled. Of course this was how it ended up. It was just their luck.

Suddenly Lessie yelped, stumbling forward.

"GOTCHA!" Papyrus exclaimed as he caught the pup's torso in a hug and landed flat on his stomach, holding him in place.

Chara blinked in surprise but shook it away quickly.

 _Now!_ They thought.

They focused, eyes flashing in red. A patch of red weeds rose from the soil below and wrapped around Lessie's hind legs, binding it tight. He fell over with a yelp, tried to use his sword and shield as support, and failed. He landed in the cold snow with a heavy clunk of metal, and Chara continued their spell by binding his forelegs to the ground as well. Within seconds the knots were complete, and Lessie was secured struggling in the snow, letting out pitiful whine after whine as he flailed about with no way out.

Chara let out a sigh of relief.

_Damn. That was a close one._

Papyrus stood up, took a look at the bindings and mimicked the action. "PHEW! THAT WAS A CLOSE CALL! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?"

"I'm fine, sir." Chara flexed the shoulder that they used to parry Lessie's attack and winced at the dull ache that traveled down. "Well, better than I could have been, anyhow. I thank you for that. I was hoping to avoid a fight if I could."

"YEAH, I KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN. I AM VERY SORRY ABOUT THIS. I KNOW LESSIE CAN BE A BIT HYPER MOST OF THE TIME BUT HE'S NEVER ATTACKED ANYONE LIKE THIS BEFORE. I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY HE'D DO SOMETHING LIKE… UHH..."

"Oh no, it's no problem." Chara waved their hand dismissively, not wanting Papyrus to dwell too much on why Lessie had attacked, lest he found out their true identity. "I'm sure he had a very good reasons for doing what he did. But let's not get ourselves caught on such trivial matters. What's important is that we- _"_

They flew backwards, the wind knocked out of them as Papyrus suddenly swooped down, picked them up by the waist and ran forward, all in a single motion.

In the sudden, flailing movement, Chara's mind took a few seconds to catch up, but once they did, they clutched onto the skeleton's shoulder and growled.

"What the hell are you-?!" They started in a breathless wheeze, only to freeze up when they saw Lessie's face right in front of their own, his big slobbering tongue flopped out in a wide doggy smile. They scowled, not knowing what other expression to make.

Then the smile was gone, replaced by an angry snarl that bared his sharp teeth and ugly gum. The pup struck out, his mouth opening and shooting out with every intention of biting their face off.

This time, Chara knew exactly what expression to make: horror. "SWEET CHRIST!"

"WHOA NELLY!" Papyrus echoed.

He threw the human to one side like a common basketball, and leapt into the other, making them both crash into the snow but also allowing Lessie's head to fly past them without causing much harm.

The snow did little to cushion the landing for Chara and they grunted out loud as their shoulder took the brunt of the landing. They fell to the hard ground in a roll, and after three or four tumbles (it was hard to count so quickly after you've literally been thrown by someone to the ground), they came to a lazy stop, their face down and buried in the cold.

They let out a long, tired groan, wondering what the hell happened to their life.

_Chara Dreemurr: Crowned Princess of the Underground, thrown around like a sack of potatoes. Join us next week where she will be strung up on a tree as a substitute piñata. Sticks will be provided._

They rolled over to their back and strained to sit up as fast as they could. They didn't know how, but Lessie had freed himself of their plants and had chased them down like a hound. The threat was still out there and they couldn't remain off guard any longer than they have already.

"BLEH! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?" Papyrus asked as he stood up too, spitting a wad of snow out of his mouth.

"I will manage." They growled. They picked up their dropped dagger with one hand and summoned a magic one on the other. "Where is he?"

"LESSIE?" Papyrus asked.

"Who else?"

"UHH, RIGHT WHERE YOU LEFT HIM… SORT OF."

"What?" They turned around, and true enough, the puppy's armoured body was still in the snow behind them, all four of his legs bound with knots of red weed they'd conjured up. But there was one thing that caught their eyes, something that made them do a double take and take a moment to process. Their eyes told them one thing, but their brain refused to believe, because it was… Well, it was ridiculous.

Lessie's head…

It was missing.

The whole head was missing, and in its stead was a long pillar of white fur that seemed grow out of his neck. They trailed the pillar with their gaze, up and up and higher and higher, until they reached the top where they found…

"Oh my lord…"

Papyrus chuckled nervously. "YEP, THAT'S UHH… THAT'S WHAT HE DOES."

Chara's eyes were wide, unable to turn away from the horrible sight that was displayed before them as though it was a four vehicle car crash that's occurring right before their eyes. Indeed Lessie's body was where it'd been since the start, but as established, the head was nowhere near where they'd last seen it.

It was now, in fact, floating in the air.

Though 'floating' might not have been the correct term (because the idea of a telekinetic, self amputating dog was weird even for a monster standard). No, the head was technically 'hanging' in the air, hung there by the end of an enormous length of thick white… _column_ that seemed to snake about in the sky looking like a crayon drawing done by a one year old, twisted and curled in a large bundle that could rival a small cloud.

It took them more than a few seconds, but they soon realised that the long, slithering pipe like fur, was Lessie's neck. 'Bizarre' was the term they wanted to use, but it seemed woefully inadequate.

" _Arf!"_ Lessie's happy bark echoed down from the sky like a distant call, but Chara didn't know what to say to that.

The good thing was, they didn't need to.

Lessie's head flew down, swooping towards them like a hawk on a baby rabbit.

Chara leapt to the side and heard the loud clicking of jaw as Lessie swept past. His head did an instant U-turn mid-air, and came for them again with his fangs bared like a cobra, which was fitting given how his current appearance resembled that of a serpent more than it did a canine.

They leapt back, then leapt back again, only to do it once more as the zig-zag attack kept up, relentless in its pattern and unending much like his own neck seemed to be.

They were going to have to come up with a plan other than to dodge and fast. Otherwise, they were going to end up meeting the child sporting a series of dog bite that would no doubt frighten the little one to death. Then where will they be?

Probably back in time, but that was besides the point.

"HOLD ON CHARA, I'M COMING TO HELP!" Papyrus announced with a brave and boisterous voice that unfortunately told Chara he was about to do something stupid.

And do something stupid he did, because in the instant that followed, when Lessie's head came at them for another hawk strike, Papyrus decided the best idea was to leap into the air, and cling onto the flying head by his stretching neck like he was hugging a full body pillow.

"GOT-" was about the only thing he had the time to say before he was launched off, holding desperately onto the ever stretching neck. "-CHAAAAAAAHHHH!"

"Papyrus!" Chara yelled after him, but he was in no position to answer.

Lessie made a series of sharp turns, flailing the skeleton about until he lost his grip and was flung into a nearby bush.

Chara winced at the loud thud, and took a step forward in concern. "Papyrus?!"

A moment later, an orange gloved hand popped out of the bush. "IiiI'Mm OokAYY!" Papyrus said, then flopped back in a dead faint, groaning as no doubt his world spun around him.

Chara sighed, both in relief as well as exasperation.

They ducked as Lessie resumed his attack, his head coming to take a chunk out of their face as though it was made of his favourite dog treat. He made noise that was a mix between a growl and a snarl, probably frustrated that his attacks hadn't connected even once. It was a sentiment that Chara shared wholeheartedly for a completely different reason.

Lessie came at them head on, and Chara made their move.

Their body ignited in flames, white, hot and angry.

Lessie yelped, and changed his course in panic, flying far to the side, well away from them.

They smirked, but only for a moment. They could only keep the fire at this volume continuously for so long, and constant defense didn't win battles either. Unless they were intending to kill the pup, fire was only buying them time until he figures out how to get around it.

Out of options, they turned and ran, straight into the forest where they will be able to decrease the angle of attack for Lessie. The guard had already turned his head around and was chasing after them from afar.

Eyeing the dog for his movements, Chara began running through their options of escape.

Binding through weeds? That they've already tried. One on one combat didn't really work when their opponent was literally a flying head with a really long neck like a damned Chinese dragon. They knew what their instinct was telling them: _Cut him. Burn him. Beat him to an inch of his life._ But this was one of the situations where they couldn't listen to their instinct. Though an enemy now, Lessie was still one of their people and they weren't going to do anything that will cause harm.

They had to stop him without killing him.

How annoying was that?

" _You have to pet Lesser Dog! He'll become instant friends with you!"_

They vaguely remembered the child telling them that, quite excitedly too. Was it really that simple? They didn't believe it. Even if they did, it was a bit difficult to pet a dog whose head is literally a few storeys up in the air and flailing about.

_Unless I can stop him somehow._

_Cut him._ The voices suggested. _Hurt him enough and he'll stop moving._

They ignored it in its entirety and tried to find an alternative.

Lessie suddenly came from the side, slapping a branch just above them and making the pile of snow on it plop down on them like a thick white turd.

"Gah!" They yelled as the snow hit them squarely in the face. They doubled the fire around them, melting it away. They got their vision back, but the melted snow had soaked into their clothes which -while not exactly bad- wasn't very comfortable, and didn't help with their mood one bit. They used their flames to dry out their clothes in an instant and toned it down before the fabric caught on fire.

Lessie performed the same trick again, again and again, each time, forcing Chara to heat up and melt the snow away to keep their vision as clear as possible.

What the hell was he doing? Was he trying to douse the fire away so that he could take a bite out of them? Did dogs know to put water on fire? Or did Lessie know because he was a dog monster and not just a normal dog? Monster intellects were difficult to grasp sometimes.

Chara shook their head. _Now's really not the time to dwell on this._

Lessie came down at the ground, a meter away from their feet, and flicked the soil with his head.

"Shit!" They cursed as they covered their face from the flying dirt and snow.

They took a sharp turn to the left and raised their fire levels again, trying to melt the snow away like the last upteenth times.

Then, it happened.

Like a candle light under a sharp gust, the fire around their body began to flicker on and off. Chara didn't even have the time to question it when, with a last sputter, the flames vanished completely, puffed away into the wind.

Realisation struck and Chara's eyes widened in horror, at the terrible, rookie mistake that they've made.

"Shit."They cursed, but it was too late.

Without warning, a sudden weight crashed on their shoulders, making their entire body feel like it's been coated in lead, making each step heavier than the last.

They had exhausted their magic much too quickly, causing the fatigue to hit them like a caffeine crash. It was one of the most basic things a monster learned about their magic: If you keep your magic usage on a level, you will always be able to recharge faster than you can use it and keep the physical toll to a minimum; but spend it all too fast, the fatigue doubled, the recharge time tripled. It was a mistake many younglings made when they first obtain their magic, and now they've done it too. This was what Lessie was aiming for.

 _Clever little shit._ Chara growled, even though their anger was mostly directed at themselves for falling for it.

Without their magic as protection and with their run now half the speed of what it was, Lessie gained on them fast.

They forced their heavy legs to push through, each step noticeably delayed as their tired muscles refused to listen to their commands. Their world began to spin, their balance becoming wobbled as though they were trying to run through a ship caught in a storm. They were running out of time, and fast.

Chara cursed again as a shot of fear pierced through their heart. They'd seen what happens when one gets caught by attack hounds. They'd seen children get torn to pieces, their jugular ripped apart when the beastly canines bit into their neck to 'secure' them in place. They always told themselves that it was not the way they were going to die, and it sure as hell wasn't going to be today.

There was one plan that they'd thought of in their mind, and it was one which they hadn't entirely thought through, one which they weren't sure if it was even going to work. But they weren't exactly swimming in options right then, and if there was even a grain of chance for success, they sure as hell was going to follow it.

It was now or never.

They struggled towards the nearest, largest tree that they could find, and paused there for half a second, to make sure that Lessie will follow their back instead of cut them off by going around the other side of the tree. A second away from impact, they dashed around it.

They looped around the trunk for a full two rotation, ducking under the length of Lessie's neck that was left behind each time.

Then, as Lessie followed them under for the second time, they turned around, opened their arms wide, and met his head in a bear hug.

The crash made them slide back several feet, which they honestly hadn't been expecting and now had to think of a solution for. And while they had their mind distracted, Lessie clamped his mouth over their shoulder and sunk his teeth into their flesh.

They let out a gut wrenching scream.

The pain was a lot different than they had expected. It wasn't like getting cut with a knife. They could barely feel the teeth pierce their flesh save for the little ' _pop!'_ that it made as it broke through the skin. The blow of the bite was what hurt more, the sheer strength behind the dog's jaw clamping down on them. It was like someone had placed a vice around their shoulder and was tightening it as hard as they could, as though trying to flatten them until their sides popped out like a dumpling. With an angry growl, Lessie began shaking his head side to side, digging his teeth and jaw harder, deeper. There was not a grain of doubt in their mind: He was trying to take a chunk of flesh with him.

Chara bit their lips hard, and slapped their free hand over Lessie's head, clutching it tight to minimise the shaking.

" _There. There."_ They hissed out through grit teeth, as they pet the pup with all the gentleness of smashing a rock against a wall. They had intended to sound reassuring, but they supposed they had to be in a position of comfort themselves before they could start comforting anyone else.

As expected, the pup didn't even flinch at the 'pet' and continued his vicious attack.

_Okay. That's not working. Time for plan B._

They growled and roared out loud as they milked all the strength they had into forcing their legs a step forward, pushing Lessie along with them. They took another step, then another and another, all towards the tree they'd looped around earlier.

Each step was met with resistance from Lessie, who continued to move his head side to side and dig at their flesh more and more. Chara was trembling at this point, could barely keep their eyes open. They couldn't raise their one arm, and there was a wetness on their shoulder that was slowly travelling down to a point where they could feel it on their breast. The blood felt warm at first, but it quickly cooled against Snowdin's subzero temperature, making them shiver at the freezing sensation. Simply put, they weren't feeling too well.

 _Just... a few step... more._ They ragged even in their mind as their half hooded eyes glared at the tree ahead. The magic exhaustion was hitting them hard now. They weren't supposed to move around so much in these scenarios, nevermind get bitten by a dog.

They took one more step. Two. Three. And suddenly they were there.

They grunted when they hit the soft log of fur that was Lessie's neck, looped tightly around the wide tree trunk.

They took a few steps to the side, followed the neck which they had ducked under earlier and created a gap between the neck and the tree until it was wide enough for them to jump through.

Then, with a wide grin, they fell forward.

The world spun as they tumbled over the length of furry neck as though it was a railing. They heard Lessie's confused whine as he followed them through, and they snorted a laugh.

Before they even hit the ground, Lessie let out a loud yelp, released the bite on their shoulder, and they landed flat on their back with a thud.

They screamed.

They didn't know how long they'd been lying there, but when they realised where they were, they had crawled their way away from the tree somewhat. Or at least that's what the trail of blood in the snow told them was what they did. With a loud groan they pulled themselves to a sitting position, barely conscious of the freezing snow melting into their pants. They looked up at their handy work.

Lessie was struggling, yelping and barking as he tried to pull his head back, only succeeding in hurting himself as his head pushed roughly into the coarse tree bark. His head was currently looped around the large tree, tied into a half knot that, despite being very simple, was apparently still much too complex for Lessie's doggy brain to undo. It was something Chara had been banking on. If Lessie had been even a little bit smarter, he would have been able to get out of the knot himself easily and they would be in quite the trouble.

To simply put: Lessie was now trapped, his own neck tying him up onto a tree.

From the distance, a panicked scurrying accompanied Lessie's continuing struggles.

Chara barely had enough energy to tense up, and sighed in relief when Lessie's body came stumbling into view, bumping into trees and tripping over the roots and rocks every other step as it tried to follow the stretch of neck towards his head. Without their magic the binding must have come off.

Eventually, the body came as close to its head as it could: stuck by the knot on the opposite end as the head, kicking and pulling in its attempt to escape only to make the situation worse. Lessie's barks became choked, and he eventually stopped struggling all together. Both the head and body hung limp, and Lessie whined sadly at his predicament.

Chara sighed, slouching over as all the adrenaline drained out of them.

The fight was over.

They'd won.

_But not completely._

" _We have to make friends with all the monsters! It's the only way to break the barrier."_ The child's voice echoed from the past.

They groaned like a kid being told to wake up for the first day of school after the new years break.

They took a minute to stand then stumbled over to the pup with heavy steps, wincing at their shoulder which now felt like it was on fire for each puncture wound. When Lessie noticed them approach, he bared his teeth and growled, a sight that surely would have been more intimidating had he could look up at their face and not just their feet. They knelt down in front of him and raised their hand in a sign of peace.

"It's alright, boy. I'm not going to hurt you. I do not wish to fight, you see?" They said.

Lessie continued to growl, their words completely lost in his doggy mind.

"Shhh, my dear. Shh.." They hushed gently. "It's alright. I know I put you in this situation but I can help you out. I don't mean you harm. I'm a friend. I can _be_ your friend. Please, let me help."

For a moment, Lessie stopped his growls and tried to pull his head back into his body. He failed. He looked up at them and whimpered, a sign that Chara took as one of submission. They exhaled.

"Right. Thank you. Now if I can just check what direction I should untie you towards…" They examined the knot's structure so that they can easily tell Lessie what he needs to do to get him out.

They leaned forward, closing in on Lessie who looked at them with his beady eyes that seems to glisten with sad tears.

Then, as soon as they were in range, he bit their hand. Hard.

Chara let out a scream, their eyes slowly filling with tears.

 _Are you fucking kidding me?!_ They thought as they clenched their teeth, roaring loudly at the same time.

The dog's teeth dug into their hand and fingers, crushing the bones between his powerful jaw. He shook his head again, clearly intent on ripping out the flesh from their hand, maybe even a finger if he was lucky. Chara clenched their other hand into a fist, the urge to punch the dog in the face as powerful as the waves of pain travelling up their arm.

Their mind was an orchestra of voices and commands, all telling them to several different things.

_Pull out!_

_Don't pull out!_

_Conjure up fire!_

_Punch the dog!_

_Break his jaw!_

_Cut off his fucking head!_

It was wrong, but inside them a fire of rage built up, each wave of pain fueling it like a shovel full of coal.

They had decided to follow Frisk's instructions, refrained from using any kind of lethal moves against this mutt. They'd shown him mercy, they'd shown him compassion and offered their help and friendship despite his violent attitude, and _this_ was how he repaid them? How dare he?

How _fucking_ dare he?

The fire reached its peak, and before either of them could blink, Chara shot their hand towards the dog's eyes, fingers arched in a makeshift claw. Lessie winced with a frightened whimper, and it made their lips curl into a cruel smile.

" _You can't get angry at every little thing that you find 'not up to your standard' Chara. That's not how it works!"_

Their hand came to an abrupt halt.

" _All I'm seeing right now is just a 'selfish brat', as you might call it, getting full of themselves and doing whatever they want to do and threaten anyone who they don't like!"_

Their hand twitched, their cruel smile turning into a wide eyed scowl.

" _That's not what a good ruler does, Chara. That's what bullies do! That's what tyrants do! You're being a bully! You're being a ty-!"_

A slap, echoing from the recess of their mind. Sad and hurt eyes looked up at them, boring into their soul, haunting them like a ghost.

Lessie opened his eyes again, blinking in confusion. He whisked his eyes left and right, then looked up at them.

Chara was stared back with wide, unblinking eyes, their hand stopped just above his face.

They pulled it back, and clenched it into a fist.

And just like that, their face melted into a smile, their fingers relaxed. They gently caressed and pet the pup like a kind friend.

"There there." They said in a hushed, hoarse whisper. "There's no need to be scared now. It's going to be alright."

The pup pause his biting and made a sound. He was confused.

"Yes, that's right. I want to help you. I don't want to fight. I know you're hurting, but if you'll just let me, I can-"

Lessie bit down again, forcing Chara to cut off with a roar of pain.

They suppressed it down quickly though, and soon they were smiling again. "I-I can.. I can help you, my dear. I'll get you out of this, okay? I promise you. It's going to be okay. I want to be your friend. I _want_ to be your friend, _please_."

The guard stopped his thrashing and whisked his eyes at them again.

They smiled, showing their perfect white teeth despite their entire face clenched in agony. It was an awfully forced expression, but the intent was genuine nonetheless.

Lessie stared into their eyes a moment longer, the working of his animal brain a mystery.

Then, in a single decision, he released his jaw.

Chara recoiled their hand the moment it was free, and winced as the pain of fangs exiting their flesh burned through them. They panted short and hard, holding the wounded hand close to their chest. They took in one long breath and groaned out loud.

They looked down to the pup, who tilted his head at them, and smiled. "Good dog." They said. "You're a good dog, Lessie. Very good dog, indeed."

Lessie didn't say anything. He just stared at them, studying them.

"Now, to free you, you must do exactly as I tell you now. I'm going to put my hand on your neck, and when I tell you, I want you to extend just that section of the neck, okay?"

Lessie tilted his head, then barked.

"Okay." With a long sigh, Chara placed their uninjured hand on Lessie's neck, specifically the part that made the half knot. They tucked their hand between the folds and petted the section. "Here. Stretch here."

Lessie did so without question, and the knot immediately loosened up as though it was never there. Chara held the loose neck out and away from the tree, widening the gap.

"Now, pull your head back and you should be all back to normal."

Lessie's head retracted, snaking back through the gap, around and around the tree and back to his torso. He immediately stood up on fours and looked down at his paws. He did a circle, checking on all four of them, then looked back at his tail. He looked up at Chara and stopped.

Chara stopped too, feeling the pup's eyes gauging something of them. They tried to smile but it only came out half way. They didn't know how he was going to react, and now that they thought about it, it seemed like a foolish release him so quickly after getting him caught.

_Shit. I should have waited for Papyrus to find me first._

It was too late now though, and Chara didn't even have the energy left in them to regret. They just wanted to fall and recharge their magic.

Suddenly, Lessie made his move.

He strolled over to them in a casual four legged walk until he was standing right next to them. Chara tensed up and looked down, meeting his gaze head on. He tilted his head, looked down at their bloody hand, and began gently licking the wound.

Chara half relaxed and allowed him to clean their wound. "D… does this mean that we're friends?" They asked after a minute.

Lessie barked, his tail tall and stiff. They had no idea what that meant.

"I… suppose I'll take that as a yes, then."

Lessie ignored them and continued licking.

Chara nodded, not exactly sure if they'd succeeded in their endeavor. At least they weren't fighting a Royal Guard now. They _were_ happy about that.

"AH HA! THERE YOU TWO ARE!" Chara and Lessie both turned to find the tall skeleton walking out of a bush nearby. "I HAVE BEEN LOOKING EVERYWHERE FOR THE TWO OF YOU! I TRIED FOLLOWING LESSIE'S NECK BUT HIS BODY CAME OUT OF NOWHERE AND MADE THE PATH GO AWAY AND-" He blinked. "GREAT DANCING DOO-DAH! WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?! YOU'RE SPILLING KETCHUP AGAIN!"

Chara chuckled. "Hello to you too, Papyrus. There has been some development but…" They looked down at Lessie and pet his head which he received by flopping out his tongue in a smile. "I think we can talk about that later. For now... I could definitely use a can of soda."

* * *

They rested for twenty or so minutes for Chara to recharge before they were off again on their journey.

Chara wobbled slightly on their legs, the effect of the magic exhaustion still lingering even when replenished by the earlier can of soda. They examined their exposed shoulder as they followed the young pup sniffing through the white snow. He had done a number on them, leaving clear puncture marks that were large enough for them to shove the tip of their pinky in. They ran their hand over the wound, casting the healing spell they've been using a far more times that day than they had thought they ever would in their life. The wound slowly started mending itself, not as fast they would have liked, but enough to notice the flesh closing up bit by bit.

"ARE YOU SURE YOU DON'T WANT ANOTHER SODA?" Papyrus asked, walking besides them. He'd been fretting over them like a concerned mother since the beginning and though it was starting to get on their nerve, Chara smiled reassuringly.

"I'll be alright. I got my magic back from the first can, I can take care of the rest. I do wish to get more practice in for my healing spells. My mother always told me I'm overdue for one and now I'm finally agreeing with her."

Papyrus let out an audible sigh. "I'M REALLY SORRY ABOUT THIS. I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOTTEN INTO HIM. HE'S USUALLY SO FRIENDLY WITH EVERYONE, I'VE NEVER SEEN HIM ACT SO VIOLENT."

Chara shrugged, "It's nothing to apologise for. He was only doing his job."

"HIS JOB IS TO CAPTURE HUMANS AND HELP CIVILIANS! NOT MAUL PEOPLE TILL THEY START SPILLING KETCHUP!"

"Mistakes were made. I'm sure he is sorry. You are sorry yes?"

Lessie looked up from the ground and barked.

"There. You see?"

Papyrus grumbled much to their amusement. "THERE IS SUCH THING AS BEING TOO FORGIVING YOU KNOW?"

"I'm hardly forgiving."

"YOU'RE BEING NICE TO SOMEONE WHO JUST BIT YOU TWICE. ISN'T THAT FORGIVING?"

Chara did wonder that. They supposed what they did was somewhat forgiving, but it didn't seem like they deserved the title. It was Frisk's little voice in their head that prompted them to act in such manner. The credit should be going to the little one, not them.

"I suppose. He's been a good dog so far, however." They said, and it was true. Lessie still didn't wag his tails at them but he's been a thorough companion so far, even going far as to rest his head on their lap while they were recharging their magic. They didn't know if he was doing it out of friendliness, regret or gratitude, but he was helping them now, and that was all that mattered.

"NYEH! STOP COMPLEMENTING HIM NOW! YOUR EASY FORGIVENESS WILL MAKE HIM GROW A BAD HABIT!"

Chara giggled. They had to admit, it was a different experience, being called 'Forgiving'. 'Vengeful', 'insane', and 'evil bitch' were more to their taste. 'Forgiving' was not the word they've ever been described as before.

 _And I have you to blame for it._ They said, reaching out to their mind. _Do you hear me, darling? This is all your fault. You need to come back and take responsibility._

The void in their mind responded with silence.

They sighed. _Of course if you come back now without my help, I'll get really mad at you. So you better sit tight and wait for me._

Silence.

They huffed and distracted their sullen heart by focusing on their healing.

"YOU KNOW YOU'RE REALLY GOOD AT THAT." Papyrus commented, nodding at their nearly closed bite wound where only bits of scars were left.

"I would be better if I paid more attention to in class." Chara muttered, remembering all the times they'd snored off during their mother's healing art lessons. They much preferred father's combat lessons more, though if they'd know how much they'd get hurt in an actual fight, they would have seen the benefits of the healing spells. It was a mistake of an impatient youth, which they still were, but they hoped they were slowly growing out of it.

"I THINK YOU'RE PLENTY GOOD AS IS. I'VE BEEN MEANING TO ASK, ACTUALLY. HOW COME YOU KNOW ALL THOSE SPELLS? MOST PEOPLE I KNOW ARE EITHER HEALERS OR FIGHTERS, BUT RARELY EVER BOTH."

Chara frowned, wondering if they should explain how their magic worked. Copying someone's magic and turning it against them was something that they liked to do in mid battle to catch them off guard, but in truth those situations were far and between. Their fight with the flower creature had been one of the exceptions given how vicious he was. They shrugged, not seeing the harm in telling.

"It's my core ability" They said simply. "I'm a copycat. I learn spell from others, though it takes time for me to master it fully. My coloured blades, the flames and my healing spells, I've learned them all through by facing them in combat."

"HEY THAT'S NEAT! CAN YOU COPY MY BONE MAGIC THEN?" Papyrus' eyes flashed blue and a single pillar of bone, no taller than his knee height, stuck out of the ground and began making circle around the snow like a shark around a baby seal. The moment it did so however, Lessie turned around and began chasing it about with salivating mouth. "GAH! BAD DOG! STOP THAT! BACK TO WORK!"

The bone disappeared into the ground, and Chara giggled as Lessie whined sadly only for a moment before skipping back over to continue his work as though nothing had happened. "Not exactly. It's not so simple to copy a spell. I especially won't be able to copy a spell like yours too easily. It's too… blunt."

"'BLUNT'?"

"It doesn't break my skin." Chara elaborated. "It doesn't touch my flesh underneath, so I cannot even begin to copy the outline of the spell."

Papyrus's pale skull seemed to turn blue with horror. "YOU MEAN YOU HAVE TO GET HURT BY THE SPELL TO COPY IT?"

"Not… necessarily. But it does need to get under my skin in a large quantity so I suppose hurting me is the best way to go about it. That or go deep beneath my skin. The more often or deeper it gets, the quicker I can copy. If it touches my bone marrow directly, I can begin copying a crude version of it immediately. The knowledge simply gets ingrained to my instinct." They recalled the time when they took a brunt of Flowey's pellets for the child. It had shredded their back, cutting through their skin, muscle and scraping their shoulder bones. In the ocean of pain that followed, their magic had swallowed up the information it needed and ingrained it into their bloodstream.

"SO… IN ORDER TO LEARN MY SPELL, YOU'LL NEED TO…"

"I'll need cut myself open first to a point where your bones can brush against my flesh. But even then, once will not be enough. You'll have to do it in new parts of my body over and over. Cutting magic is easier for me to learn since it can go in and out relatively quickly multiple times, or spells that can envelop my wound, like a healing spell or fire spell."

Papyrus visibly shuddered and Chara laughed.

"I have no intentions of learning your spells, sir. You need not worry."

"NO, IT'S NOT THAT." He shook his head, then turned to look at them with piteous eyes. "I WAS JUST THINKING OF HOW MUCH YOU WOULD HAVE HAVE BEEN HURT TO LEARN YOUR CURRENT SPELLS."

Chara smiled and shrugged. "I thank you for your concern, but these spells were taught to me under my own request." In fact they kind of begged Asriel to cut them and burn the wound over to learn their spells. The healing came naturally when their mother found out and patched their wounds up. They got into so much trouble for that and Asriel cried for so long, but the fact that they could use the same spell as their new brother, to have that similarity between them, made him smile so brightly afterwards. That moment meant the world to them. It still warmed their insides just remembering it.

"IT STILL MUST HAVE HURT THOUGH. LIKE A LOT." Papyrus grumbled.

"Nothing is without its price. Pain was mine, and it was one I was happy to pay."

"I ALMOST FEEL SORRY THAT I ASKED AT ALL." The skeleton hummed, his face still pressed into a miffed frown.

They finished their healing and flexed their shoulder around a bit. There were no sign of the wound on the surface but their muscles were still sore from the brutal pressing it received. Such subtle internal injuries were outside of their healing powers. They were just going to have to wait it out.

"WELL, ENOUGH ABOUT ALL THIS PAIN TALK. WE SHOULD FOCUS ON THE JOB FOR NOW. WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO FIND SOME IMPORTANT FACTS IF WE KEEP OUR EYES OUT."

Chara pulled up their shirt over their shoulder again, trying not to mind the cold crustiness left behind by their dried blood. "Well, let us hope my shirt had enough of the child's scent for Lessie to track."

"YEAH, ABOUT THAT." Papyrus lifted his brow. "ARE YOU _SURE_ YOU'VE ONLY KNOWN YOUR FRIEND FOR TWO DAYS? I MEAN, IF YOU HAVE THEIR SCENT ON _YOUR_ SHIRT, THAT SEEMS A BIT… I DON'T KNOW. THAT SEEMS STRANGE."

Chara felt their cheek redden. "W-well, I didn't say I _do_ have their scent, I just said I _might."_

"AND YOU DID." Papyrus deadpanned.

"Because the child sticks to me like they need me to breathe or something! Of course I ended up with their scent on me."

"UH HUH." Papyrus gave them a knowing smile which they could only sputter at. "WELL, WHATEVER THE REASON, LESSIE HERE IS A GOOD SNIFFER I'M SURE HE CAN DO THE JOB. AND IF NOT, WE CAN ALWAYS GO AND SEE THE OTHER CANINES! DOGAMY AND DOGARESSA ARE EXCELLENT SNIFFERS AS WELL! WE HAVE MYRIAD OF OPTIONS! MYRIADS!"

Chara swallowed and tried their best to smile, but they couldn't help their brows from furrowing at the suggestion.

After what they'd just been through with Lessie, they were skeptical of meeting with the other guards. If all the Canine units were so well trained, they were going to be facing a lot more challenges than they had hoped. They had planned on lying their way through the meetings, but if the Canines were anything like Lessie, they'll catch on to their nature so fast, Chara wouldn't even get the chance to lie. In fact, they weren't even sure lying would even work anymore. It certainly wouldn't have worked on Lessie, what with his half comprehension of basic english. On top of that, if they continued to get attacked by the guards, they worried how long it'll be before Papyrus figures out that they were human. As thick as he may be, even he would get suspicious if they were attacked by his comrades one after the other. And if he ever decides to turn against them, their search for the child would be over. They could strike out on their own for the search but without help or resources they were bound to get lost in this vast forest. They wouldn't know where to even begin.

 _So let us hope that Lessie here will be enough for the search._ They said to themselves. _I am not going to be able look the child in the face ever again otherwise._

"HM, LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GETTING CLOSER TO THE TOWN NOW." Papyrus said before snapping his finger with a wide smile. "HEY! THAT MEANS WE'RE GETTING CLOSER TO ONE OF MY PUZZLES!"

Chara turned to him with a quizzical look. " _Your_ puzzles?"

"THAT'S RIGHT! I, THE EVER DILIGENT PAPYRUS, HAVE SPENT MOST OF MY WORK TIME SETTING UP MULTITUDE OF PUZZLES AND TRAPS AROUND THIS FOREST! THEY ARE MY PRIDE AND JOY, EACH DESIGNED WITH METICULOUS PRECISION TO CAPTURE ANY AND ALL HUMANS THAT MAY COME ACROSS IT! WITH A MODERATE AMOUNT OF DISCOMFORT TOO!"

Chara's brow twitched at that last bit of information. "O-oh. Is that so?" They said with a crooked smile. "You haven't… _actually_ caught a human with them before, have you?"

"NOT YET!" Papyrus said without a hint of shame. "YOU SEE, NO HUMANS HAVE EVER TURNED UP AROUND HERE, AND TRUTH BE TOLD I DON'T THINK THEY WILL FOR A VERY LONG TIME. BUT A GUARD MUST NEVER SLACK OFF IN HIS TASK! I KEEP EVERY ONE OF MY PUZZLES RECALIBRATED SO THAT THEY ARE ALWAYS IN THEIR TOP CONDITION! SHOULD THAT DAY COME, I WILL BE PREPARED!"

Chara didn't know whether to smile or scowl. Papyrus was the stellar example of a Guard whom they were immensely grateful that he was working for the Kingdom. And he was also the stellar example of a Guard who could become their greatest obstacles in finding the child should the truth ever be spilt.

They knew from the start that they couldn't keep their human nature a secret forever, but the time of truth seemed to be approaching them faster than they'd hoped. They just needed to hold on till they rescued the child. After that they could figure things out one by one. They just needed to play it cool until then.

" _Arf!"_

They looked up, finding Lessie paused in the middle of his search and looking off to his side.

"WHAT'S WRONG BOY? DID YOU FIND SOMETHING?" Papyrus asked with a hint of excitement.

" _Arf!"_ The puppy barked again then suddenly took off towards whatever he was looking at, entering a fully sprint without a single glance back.

"WHAT IN THE-? DANG IT LESSIE!" He turned to them and shouted. "QUICK, AFTER HIM!"

Chara followed the skeleton without a word, their mind still catching up even as their body moved. But once they understood that Lessie might have just found a lead, their heart began pumping with excitement. They didn't want to get their hopes up but the prospect of finding the child again was too attractive to ignore.

"NYEH! HE'S GETTING CLOSER TO MY ELECTRICITY MAZE! LESSIE, STOP! YOU'LL HURT YOURSELF IF YOU'RE NOT CAREFUL!"

Chara winced. Okay that was not something they wanted to hear. They had hoped they could find a way to convince Papyrus of avoiding the puzzles if they could. The name 'Electricity maze' didn't exactly sound pleasant and the fact that it was designed to specifically catch humans didn't bode well either.

_Suck it up, you coward. If you want to find the child then you'll have to endure._

They grit their teeth and pushed on ahead.

They soon came to a clearing, one of the many wide, white plains that Snowdin was so abundant of. This one, however, had a feature unique compared to the others: a perfect square pavement that encompassed almost the entirety of the field. And unlike the others around the forest, this field had no woods surrounding it, but a cliff edge. The only entrance to it was from the woods and road behind them, and the small road that was on the other side.

Chara realised that this was the perfect scenario to trap someone to engage in the puzzle, which is probably what the paved square was. It was also why they got a sinking feeling in their gut when they couldn't find Lessie on the field, or on the road beyond. If the only entrance was the woods behind them and the road beyond, there was no way that both they and Papyrus would have miss the pup, right?

Unless they've just been given the slip.

"GYEH! WHAT IN THE-?!" Papyrus yelled, and Chara turned around to find him stepping back from the woods they just exited out of. Or, more specifically, the giant wall of blue electricity that was blocking their way back. "HEY! THAT'S NOT SUPPOSED TO ACTIVATE WITHOUT MY PERMISSION!"

Chara backed up too, the sinking feeling in their gut now a blood curdling shriek of their instincts warning them of an incoming danger, of a recently sprung trap. A trap that they fell for, hook line and sinker.

"well, to be precise, it can't turn on without _our_ permission right?"

Chara froze.

"and by that i mean: it can be turned on as long as one of us is here. does that make sense?"

" _Arf! Arf!"_

"oh, good. cuz i wouldn't want to explain that again. too much of a hassle, you know?"

They turned around, slow and tentative, despite knowing who was going to be there when they looked back.

They narrowed their eyes to a glare and sneered at the newcomer.

"Mr Sans."

The skeleton pet the puppy besides him and grinned wide.

"sup kid. fancy meeting you here again."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Aaaand I'm ending it there. I was actually planning on continuing with the chapter after this, but that bit was such a perfect cliffhanger for the next part, I could not resist :D**
> 
> **I took a bit of liberty with Lessie's neck stretching thing and incorporated into the fight. I personally think it's a bit creepy that he can do that and if someone did that in the middle of a fight, I sure as hell be freaking out (I'm looking at you Dhalsim). Do let me know what you guys thought of it.**
> 
> **I'll setting myself up for another deadline of two weeks so I'll do my best post up a new chapter by then (or maybe I'll be a bit late like this time :P)**
> 
> **Ciao!**
> 
> **P.S: Thank god AO3 allows special text formatting. That terminal code gets swallowed up on FFN (much to my growing annoyance)**
> 
> **Ideas abandoned for this chapter: Chara being held hostage by Lessie's neck. Papyrus doing the macarena to distract Lessie. Chara acting like a dog to make friends with Lessie. A full length Chara flashback.**
> 
> **Up next: Sans starts stirring things up.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Oh boy, here we are. Chapter 12. And I'm three weeks overdue (or four?). I must apologise. I was hoping to get this chapter done before the exam period but, as you can see, I did not succeed in that. At least that's over with now and I didn't delay for another 5 months. I'm sorry nonetheless.**
> 
> **I tried to get this chapter moving a bit faster moving than the previous ones, but I do worry that I may have rushed some bits. Do leave a review if you think this is so, but other than that, please enjoy the show!**
> 
> **WARNING: This chapter contains scenes of violence and sexual act against children. You'll know when it starts happening. Thou hast been warned.**
> 
> **Happy reading!**

"SANS? SANS!" Papyrus leapt into the forefront, confronting his brother face to face. His expression was that of surprise, a hint of happiness and a _lot_ of anger. Sans looked up and smiled as though he was noticing his brother's presence for the first time. His smile was innocent, casual, and it made Chara's skin crawl at the mere sight of it.

He leaned down to Lesser Dog and began whispering something to his ear. The pup's tail perked up and after a small pet on his head and a loud bark, the pup was dashing off, hopping through the square field with an elaborate twists and turns before disappearing through the forest on the other side of the trap. Chara got the feeling something bad was about to happen from that, and it was in their interest _not_ to wait and find out what.

_Shit._ They hissed as they whisked their eyes side to side, searching for a sign of any backup the skeleton might have brought. There was no one else on the field besides him thankfully, but that still raised the question: what was he doing here? Chara didn't give themselves the time to find the answer. They needed to find a way out of this situation first.

"hey, sup bro." Sans said, his voice ever so humorous.

"DON'T 'SUP' _ME,_ SANS!" Papyrus placed his hands on his hips like a peeved parent. "WHY IS THAT ALWAYS THE FIRST THING YOU SAY WHEN I FIND YOU? HOW CAN YOU SOUND SO CASUAL?!"

"years of practice." Sans shrugged. "besides, what else am i supposed to say?"

"OH I DON'T KNOW. HOW ABOUT 'oh hey, sorry i was away paps. i had some important business to take care of so i missed a bit of work.'?"

"oh. okay. 'sorry i was away paps. i had some important business to take care of so i missed a bit of work.'"

"DON'T SAY IT NOW!"

Sans shrugged and whisked his gaze to Chara, pinning them down like a piece of paper with a tac. They bristled at the gaze and took an unconscious step back.

Immediately they screamed, jumping forward as their hand touched something that caused white hot pain to travel up their arm. Their entire limb felt numb and they could smell the hint of burning hair on the back of their hand. They turned around, grabbing their aching appendage by the wrist, and found a wall of blue electricity behind them, sparkling angrily at the air like a kicked hornet's nest.

"WHOA, EASY NOW." Papyrus said as he placed a palm over their shoulder. "THAT BARRIER PACKS SOME PUNCH. YOU DON'T WANT TO HAVE YOUR WHOLE ARM COOKED NOW, DO YOU?"

Chara shuddered an exhale. This thing could cook their whole arm? Forcing themselves through the barrier was out of the question then. "O-oh goodness. M-my apologies, sir. I didn't mean to cause alarm." They said, fortunately with only a minimal stutter. "I suppose my head was a touch out of it."

"I'LL SAY! WHAT WERE YOU TRYING TO DO WALKING BACKWARDS LIKE THAT? THE MOONWALK?"

As Papyrus laughed, Chara joined nervously along, not entirely sure what a 'moonwalk' was but going with the lighthearted flow regardless. They chanced a look up, and saw Sans' stiff grin, his piercing gaze like that of a marble statue. The smile pulling their mouth vanished at the sight and they backed up again as their heart began to pound. _Shit._ They thought once more, and it probably wasn't the last time they were going to say it that day either.

Sans.

Sans the bloody skeleton.

It's been awhile since they met a person whose presence caused them to freeze up like this. It was disgusting, them -the Crowned Princess of the land- wary of a lazy slacker who also happened to be one of those pricks who laughed at his own jokes. But they couldn't help it. Sans' coming signalled the end of their search, another failure coming their way.

It was as the child had said: Sans and they didn't get along too well. They hadn't left the best of first impressions and they didn't part ways with him without leaving a little more than a small provocation. They had thought it funny at the time, a bit of a 'feel good' moment insulting a guard who refused to do his job properly. They still believed they were in the right, of course, no matter what happened with the child and what was happening now, but that meant very little in reality.

The reality was, Sans knew that they were a human.

And reality was, he had more reasons to tell Papyrus the truth than most.

A human that attacked and insulted him, travelling with his brother? If it wasn't for looking out for Papyrus' safety, Sans would be blabbering their identity simply to spite them. Their fate was in his hands, and whether they were about to be screwed over or not all depended on what sort of person he was. And to be frank, from where they were standing, Chara didn't think their chances look too well at all.

_His brother doesn't know that I'm human. But does_ he _know that?_

If he didn't, then that might be something that they could hold onto a little longer, but as of now that was an unknown. The smallest of slip and the situation would devolve at a disastrous rate. Chara had to keep their senses sharp, lest they find themselves without an ally and on the run from a very determined duo of guards.

"you guys uhh... you guys are getting along well, huh?" Sans said in a surprised tone that in no way indicated that he was happy.

"WHY YES! CHARA HERE HAS BEEN SUCH LOVELY COMPANY SO FAR. I'M SURE YOU ALREADY KNOW. I HEARD THAT YOU TWO HAVE MET BEFORE!" Papyrus said, oblivious to the angry sparks flying about between his company.

"yeah. we have. it sure was uhh… a real great meeting, wasn't it? _._ " Sans' hollow grin widened, and Chara shivered at the sudden coldness permeating through their skin.

"Yes… 'Great'…"

"GREAT!" Papyrus said happily. "I'M GLAD TO HEAR THAT YOU WERE ABLE TO MAKE FRIENDS WITHOUT MY HELP, SANS! IT'S ONE OF THE THINGS I WORRY ABOUT THE MOST YOU KNOW? KNOWING HOW INCOMPETENT YOU ARE." He laughed again. "BUT ENOUGH OF SUCH PLEASANTRIES! WHERE ON EARTH HAVE YOU BEEN? I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR YOU EVERYWHERE!"

Sans' gaze lingered on them for a moment longer before turning to his brother, its choking intensity disappearing at the same time. "sorry bro. i had some stuff to take care of so i had to bail out."

"YES, YOU HAD SOME STUFF TO TAKE CARE OF: YOUR _JOB_! WHAT'S MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOUR _JOB_?!"

"iunno, drinking ketchup?" Sans shrugged. "i was actually looking for you. you weren't where i left you."

"BECAUSE YOU LEFT _ME_ FIRST! I WAS LOOKING FOR _YOU!"_

"right, right. so that's how you met this kid, huh?" Pinprick eyes pinned down on Chara again. "uhh, speaking of, i don't see your 'partner' around, kid. i thought you guys were travelling together. did they go home or something? trouble in paradise?"

Chara pulled themselves away from their search for an escape route and focused back to Sans. They hesitated on their answer, unsure whether telling the truth will be more beneficial or making up a lie would be. Would a missing child earn his sympathy or would it just give him reason to stick around more?

"AH! THEY'VE BEEN KIDNAPPED!"

Chara blinked, then sighed deeply. _Well, there goes that dilemma._

"kidnapped?" Sans repeated, his eyesocket rising with interest.

"Yes, kidnapped." They admitted with a huff. The cat was already out of the bag, there was no need for more secrecy on that. "After we parted ways with you, the child and I met up with these monsters, Snowdrake and his friends."

Sans hummed. "huh, snowdrake. haven't seen him in a while. is he doing alright?"

"They assaulted me and made off with the child while leaving me to rot." They snapped through grit teeth. "So yes, I _do_ think that he's 'doing _alright'_."

"wow, that's… sucks to be you, huh?"

"It's awful being me right now, I think." Chara deadpanned. They then spread their lips to a smile and gestured to Papyrus. "Thankfully, I met and received the help of your brother who's been ever so gracious from the start. He certainly lives up to his 'Great' title, doesn't he?"

"NYEH HEH! YOU HEAR THAT SANS? I'M GREAT!"

It was Sans' turn to deadpan. "yeah, about that. uhh, can i ask why are you helping them, paps?"

Chara tensed while Papyrus frowned in confusion. "WHAT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT? OF COURSE I'M HELPING THEM! THEY'RE IN TROUBLE!"

"yeah, but you're not supposed to help an en-""He doesn'tknow!"

Sans trailed off, then slowly turned head towards the human with a blank expression. Chara stared back, their eyes wide and cheeks flushed.

_Bollocks._

"HELP WHO? HELP KIDS?" Papyrus said, trying to connect the dots. "OF COURSE I NEED TO HELP KIDS! I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHY SNOWDRAKE THOUGHT HE NEEDED TO ASSAULT A PAIR OF CHILDREN! I GET THAT HE'S HAVING A HARD TIME BUT WHAT WAS HE THINKING?"

Sans continued to stare, ignoring his brother.

"right. so... he doesn't know, huh?" He said.

"No, he does not." Chara affirmed, slow and concise.

"NO I DO NOT!" Papyrus chimed in. "I GUESS I DON'T REALLY UNDERSTAND HOW KIDNAPPERS THINK. AND YOU KNOW WHAT? I THINK THAT'S A GOOD THING! IS THAT A GOOD THING?"

Neither his company answered.

A long stretch of silence went by, during which Chara held their breath tight, kept their hands relaxed but free, ready for anything.

"Kidnapped, huh?" Sans began.

"Yes." Chara pulled a tight smile.

"and now you're looking for them."

"Naturally."

"and that's why my bro is helping you?"

"He is a very kind man."

"uh huh."

Another bout of crushing silence settled around them.

Chara was having trouble figuring out what the short skeleton was thinking. Unlike his brother, Sans' face was much more like an actual skull, his eyes wide and teeth pulled into a permanent grin. It was difficult to read someone who didn't have a single shred of flesh and muscle on their face. When Sans shifted his feet, Chara nearly flinched back, but the skeleton merely shrugged. Nothing menacing or dubious about it. He just... shrugged.

"okay." He said, and it took Chara several moments to realise what he had said.

"Okay?" They said themselves, trying to decipher what the hell that meant.

"yep. 'okay'." Sans shrugged again.

"What… does that mean?"

"it means 'okay', kid. i mean, i guess that all makes sense. pap's a guard. he helps people, and you're in some major trouble. i mean your friend being kidnapped? that must be real traumatising. i'm sorry to hear it, really. no matter what, having a little child being kidnapped is kinda messed up."

The human took several seconds to digest his words, and when it finally sunk it, they chanced a small, hopeful smile. "D.. Does this mean you will… remain muted regarding my nature?"

"nope. hey paps, did you know that chara here is a human?"

Chara's smile vanished into a wide eyed shock.

Papyrus fazed back, his face forming into a scowl. "UHH, WHAT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?"

Sans shrugged and continued unabashed. "this kid, bro. they're human. didn't you know?"

The tall skeleton turned to Chara, but the human had their wide eyes glued on Sans. He looked back to his brother and laughed uneasily. "NYEH HEH! WHAT? THAT'S SILLY! CHARA'S NOT A HUMAN. THEY'RE A KID! LOOK AT THEIR STRIPED SHIRT!"

"humans have kids too. don't you remember seeing them in one of Alphys' history videos?"

"I THOUGHT THOSE WERE JUST REALLY SHORT HUMANS!"

"nah, they're human children. like chara over here. the one standing right next to you"

Papyrus turned to look at them again and Chara did the same this time, their eyes a crackling storm of shock and fury. The anger clearly wasn't aimed at him, but Papyrus flinched back nonetheless, and Chara felt a twinge of guilt at their lack of control. They growled, their rage doubling. This was the first sign of mistrust Papyrus had ever shown them, and it was all _his_ fault.

A laugh echoed in the air, a low genuine laughter that portrayed nothing but pure amusement.

Chara stared at Sans who was clutching at his belly, his shoulders shaking laughter. The nerve of the bastard left them completely speechless.

"aw man, that is the _perfect_ expression. seriously, i wish i had a camera with me right now." He said with another chuckle. "oh wait, shit, i do." He pulled out from his pocket what appeared to be a mobile telephone and aimed it at the kid. "smile!" He said, and a bright flash of a camera went off.

Chara was much too stunned to even react to it.

" _You_ …" They hissed. " _Why?_ "

Sans stopped his chuckles and gave them a look. "wow, did you seriously just ask me that?"

Chara clenched their fist. They supposed the answer was obvious, but they still wanted to hear the answer straight from his face.

The skeleton shrugged easily. "sorry kid. i'm just doing my job, you know? what did you say before? small tasks are the foundation of a working kingdom or something? well, let me tell you: you inspired me kid. thanks to you, i did more job today than i had done in weeks. i hope i did you proud. i know i sure wanted to be 'commended for my effort', especially from you."

"You… _bastard._ "

"hey now, no time for compliments." Sans waved off. "you have a bigger fish to fry than me i think."

Chara blinked then whipped their head towards Papyrus who was still staring at them, his face blank as a sheet of paper.

"CH… CHARA?" He said, his voice like that of a five year old boy who just realised that his puppy died.

"Papyrus, I…" Chara couldn't continue. They didn't want to admit and tell the truth, but didn't wish to deny and outright lie to the skeleton either. So they remained quiet, and that appeared to have been an answer enough.

With a loud ' _plop!',_ the skeleton's jaw fell off his head and landed softly into the cold snow. It happened so suddenly, Chara barely had a time to react.

Then, as suddenly as the displacement of his body part, skeleton began to scream.

* * *

#  **Chapter 12**

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" Papyrus' whale call of a screamed echoed through the forest like a boat horn.

Chara flinched back at the ear piercing sound, closing their eyes for a moment to handle the sheer…. _intensity_ of the scream They watched in bewilderment as the skeleton began adding odd intonation to his screams, adding pauses, uptones and downtones like he was riding on a gravelly road. "AH AH-AHHH! AH AH-AHHH! AH AH-AHH AHHH AHHH AHHH!"

It took a moment for them to realise that he was trying to speak and they couldn't help but roll their eyes at it all. Even in this situation Papyrus still somehow ended up being a goof.

They cautiously approached, picked up the dropped jaw and offered it to the frenzied monster.

"AH, AHH AHH." He thanked casually. He took the bone, clicked it back on his face and continued as he was. "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

Chara sighed, sensing a migraine approach. "Can we please stop this? I think we all get the idea."

Papyrus seized immediately, ran over to his brother and hid behind him as though he was a big rock. He peaked over Sans' head like a frightened child. "OH MY GOD, SANS! A HUMAN! IT'S A HUMAN! HUMAN IN FRONT OF ME! WHEN?! HOW?!"

"well, when did you meet them?" Sans asked, keeping still so that the hand over his head doesn't slip over and fall.

"OH, ABOUT HALF AN HOUR AGO DOWN THE ROAD THAT WAY." Papyrus blinked. "OH MY GOD! I MET A HUMAN HALF AN HOUR AGO DOWN THE ROAD THAT WAY! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THIS?!"

"uhh, cause i wasn't there?"

"NO, NOT YOU! _YOU!"_ Papyrus gestured to Chara who crossed their arms defensively.

"I-I didn't think it was important." They said with a light blush.

"NOT IMPORTANT?! OF COURSE IT'S IMPORTANT! I HELPED YOU! I GAVE YOU FOOD!" He gasped like it was his last dying breath. "I HELPED AN ENEMY! GAAH! HOW WILL I EVER BECOME A ROYAL GUARD NOW?!"

"You did it without knowledge. They can't fault you for that." Chara tried to placate him, feeling worried. The skeleton seemed like he was losing his mind.

"NOT IF THEY FIND OUT I DIDN'T RECOGNISE A HUMAN ON SIGHT! THEY'LL SEND ME BACK TO GUARD TRAINING SCHOOL! WHAT DO I DO SANS?!"

"iunno. attack?"

Chara glared murder at Sans.

"WHAT?! BUT THAT'S WHAT RUFFIANS DO! I HAVE MORE CLASS THAN THAT!"

"then i'm out of ideas."

"BAH! TYPICAL!" Papyrus turned to them, standing tall and proud even though he was still standing behind his brother. "ALAS, HUMAN! IT SEEMS THAT -YET AGAIN- IT IS UP TO ME ALONE TO FULFIL OUR DUTIES HERE! PREPARE YOURSELF. FOR I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL TAKE REVENGE FOR THIS BETRAYAL MOST DIRE!"

Chara winced at that word, 'betrayal'. "I-I'm so very sorry that you had to find out like this, Papyrus, but you must understand I did not mean to-"

"AH! NO! NONE OF THAT!" The skeleton boomed, and Chara, for the first time knowing him, saw his face scrunched up into that of anger, of disappointment, and of simple hurt.

Chara's throat tightened at the sight. The look reminded them of the child, and of all the little ones before them that made those faces. It hurt, knowing that yet again they had brought this expression on the face of another, a person whom they believed they could have been friends.

_This is all your fault._

_This was never going to last._

_Poor little whore, all alone again._

Chara forced their expression to a passive blankness, detaching themselves from their emotions that were weighing them down. It was disappointing that they had hurt Papyrus in such way, but they had their own priorities on who to help first. And right now the little one came first. The little ones always came first.

_Let's just get this over with._

"NOW, MY LITTLE DECEIVER, PREPARE YOURSELF! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL STOP YOU! THEN I WILL CAPTURE YOU! YOU WILL BE DELIVERED TO THE CAPITAL WHERE-"

"But what of the child?"

"-YOU WILL BE…" Papyrus stopped. "THE CHILD?"

He looked down at Chara's expression which was soft and pleading. "I understand your dedication to your duties, but did you not give me your word? I'm in need of your help, Great Papyrus. The assault, the kidnapping, it all still happened."

He fidgeted. "Y-YES! I MEAN, I SUPPOSE THEY DID! B-BUT YOU'RE STILL A HUMAN! AN ENEMY! I MUST CAPTURE YOU TO FULFIL MY LIFELONG DREAM!"

"I thought I was your friend." Chara face moulded into one of hurt.

Papyrus blinked again, his own face collapsing into a contorted mix of joy and horror. "Y-YOU DID?"

"I did." The kid shuddered a sorrow filled breath. "You helped me. Despite my transgressions, you _helped_ me, shared your food, offered me a roof for supper, and you've… you've forgiven me. I trusted you."

" _TRUSTED?!_ " Papyrus repeated as though it was the most horrible word he'd ever heard. "YOU-! YOU CAN'T TRUST ME! I'M THE ENEMY!"

"But I do. You are such a Great man, Papyrus. I've never met someone so diligent. So caring. I knew I was deceiving you, but I couldn't tell you the truth knowing that we will no longer be able to remain companions. I'm so sorry that I lied to you. I just… I just wished to have you as my ally. Is that so bad?"

Papyrus stumbled back, the human's words hitting him like a mallet to a brick wall.

He turned to his brother for support, but he was too busy giving the human the stink eyes to notice.

He turned back to the human giving him a pleading look with tears in their eyes.

He pulled out a mirror from his pocket and looked to himself for guidance. His face looked like he just found out his pantry was out of dry pasta.

Dropping the mirror, he clutched at his head with both palms and gave a loud scream. "GYAAAAHHH!"

With a frustrated roar, he jumped back from the monarch and pointed his bony finger at them. "NO! I CANNOT FORGET MY DUTIES, HUMAN. I AM A MONSTER, AND AS A GUARD, MY WORK WILL ALWAYS COME FIRST!"

Chara deflated, their tearful sorrow doubling as they became the picture definition of despair. "I… I see…" They sniffled. "That is… most disappointing, good sir. I really did not wish for it to come to this."

"YES WELL, SOMETIMES THESE THINGS HAPPEN, AND YOU CAN'T ALWAYS STOP IT."

"And so it appears." Chara put their hands behind their back. Magic began to flare between their fingers like a thunderstorm. "Are… are we to be enemies then?"

"YES, UNFORTUNATELY."

"I.. understand." The magic formed into a ball of fire burning furiously in their palm. They grasped it tight, concentrating it into a lethal missile.

"BUT WORRY NOT! FOR I WILL NOT GO BACK ON MY EARLIER WORDS!"

The fire vanished in an instant. Fine brown brow tilted up. "Y… you won't?"

"NO SIR. I WILL NOT FORGET MY DUTIES, HUMAN, BUT I WILL STILL HELP YOU FINDING YOUR MISSING CHILD, JUST AS PROMISED!"

Chara stared at the tall skeleton, a look shared by Sans who leered at his brother in suspicion.

"So you won't try and capture me?" They smiled hopefully.

"WELL OF COURSE I WILL!"

They frowned. "You will?"

"YES!" Papyrus shouted.

"But you said you'll help me."

"YES!" He repeated.

"While trying to capture me?"

"YES!" He was like a coo-coo-clock at hour mark.

"I'm… afraid I don't follow."

"THERE'S NO NEED! ALLOW ME TO EXPLAIN:" Papyrus struck a pose, pointing his boney finger at them. "I WILL HELP YOU IN SEARCH OF YOUR FRIEND, BUT TO EARN MY ASSISTANCE YOU WILL HAVE TO…" He stopped for dramatic effect. "SOLVE EVERY ONE OF MY PUZZLES _WITHOUT_ MY HELP!"

Chara continued to frown. "Isn't that how one is supposed to solve a puzzle in the first place?"

"OH HO! LOOKS LIKE _SOMEONE'S_ COCKY!" Papyrus snickered villainously. "WE SHALL SEE HOW LONG YOUR CONFIDENCE LASTS, HUMAN, WHEN YOU FINALLY GET THE ZAPPING TASTE OF MY... _ELECTRICITY MAZE!_ NYEH HEH HEH HEH HEH HE- wait, SANS! WHY AREN'T YOU FOLLOWING?! COME ON, LET'S GO!"

With thundering laughter, Papyrus jogged through the field, taking an elaborate twists and turns through what Chara guessed was the maze that he was speaking so proudly of. The field had no wall, meaning the maze was floor based, and given how it is named the _electricity_ maze, it would be a smart to assume that the plain before them was a minefield of traps that will electrocute you upon touch.

Once the skeleton was on the far side of the maze, Chara turned their attention to Sans who was glowering at them with a less than happy grin. Was he sour about his brother still agreeing to help?

Well, too bad.

"well, that's a turn of event." He chuckled again, a hollow, mirthless sound.

"Indeed." Chara said as they pulled their lips to a mocking smirk. "I hope I didn't disappoint."

Unexpectedly, Sans' grin widened at that, the air around them dropping to a snap-freeze temperature. "nah, don't worry. you did pretty well." The skeleton's entire body became engulfed in blue aura, and his whole body began to float in the air. "keep up the good work kid. i'll see you on the other side."

Then, in a blink of an eye, the skeleton disappeared, then reappeared on the other end of the square, standing next to his brother as though he'd been there the entire time.

Chara blinked, their mouth agape with shock.

That was a teleportation spell. How the hell did a lazy arse like him knew a spell like _that_? What sort of magical affinity did he have that he could cast a spell like _that?_

_Laziness, obviously._ Their mind supplied, and they had to scoff at the idea.

_What, he's so lazy that he just appears where he wants to be instead of actually walking there?_ They paused. _That… actually makes a bit of sense._

Chara inhaled deep, then exhaled long and slow. They didn't have time to dwell on such mundane issues right now. Despite the setbacks, they have been given a chance to earn their new companion back.

They had to admit they were somewhat surprised by Papyrus' generosity. They knew they were being manipulative with their 'sad-little-girl' act, but with his diligence and loyalty to his work, they were expecting to do a lot more in order to get Papyrus back on their side again. They supposed it was just his nature: to be friendly and avoid any altercation possible, to find the middle ground that made it fair for everyone. Chara was expecting a fight, but as the skeleton himself had said, he had more class than that. It kind of made them feel bad at the fact that they tried to manipulate him into taking their side, but at the same time, they were happy to have this chance.

Chara stepped forward, the gears in their head preparing to spin for the coming puzzle.

Then the gears sort of halted when they noticed the long trail of footprints in the snow that gave away the full path that Papyrus had just taken.

"Umm…" They looked over at the trio of guards, then at Papyrus at particular who pumped out his chest and crossed his arms with a smug look.

"WHAT'S THE MATTER, HUMAN? TOO DIFFICULT FOR YOU?"

"No, I just realised that you-"

"WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR EARLIER BRAVADO? WEREN'T YOU ALL LIKE, ' _I CAN SOLVE ALL YOUR PUZZLES WITHOUT YOUR HELP, SIR. HARUMPH!'"_

"Well, no, I didn't exactly say that but-"

"IT SEEMS TO ME THAT YOU'RE JUST SCARED SO YOU'RE DELAYING THE INEVITABLE! I AM SEVERELY DISAPPOINTED HUMAN. YOU ARE MORE TALK THAN BITE!"

Chara quirked a brow as the urge to tell Papyrus of his blatant mistake quickly disappeared. "Oh, is _that_ what you think?"

"IT'S NOT WHAT I _THINK,_ BUT RATHER, WHAT I'M _SEEING!"_

Chara scoffed as if to laugh him off, though their toothy snarl would say otherwise. "I will make you _eat_ those words, sir."

"I WOULD LIKE TO SEE YOU TRY! A SINGLE MISSTEP WILL GIVE YOU A HEARTY ZAP! IT WILL BE QUITE UNPLEASANT, I TELL YOU! I SHOULD KNOW SINCE I'VE TRIGGERED IT MYSELF MANY TIMES TO GET THE VOLTAGE JUST RIGHT! AFTER A FEW OF THOSE, YOU WILL BE SO UNNERVED, YOU WILL HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO SURRENDER YOURSELF TO ME!"

Chara rolled their eyes. "How… simple your vision is."

No time to waste, the monarch stepped up to the edge of the large sunken square that made the puzzle maze. They peered over at the two skeletons and the pup, all of whom stood by, waiting for them to enter the maze, like scientists studying a lab rat. Chara huffed, and stepped into the square, making sure to step right into the spot where Papyrus had left his footprint in.

Pain shot through them like a bullet, but unlike a small piece of metal piercing through them, the pain became worse by the second, growing at an exponential rate that crushed every sense and thought out of them. By the time Chara realised what was happening, it was too late.

All they could do right then, was to stand there, frozen, in pain, and scream their lungs out.

* * *

Sans listened to the maze's alarm blare with a content smile, a sweet music of joybuzzer going off on an unsuspecting victim. It was the sound of a trap well sprung, accompanied joyfully by a horrified scream of the poor victim.

"heh heh, looks like the human got quite the _shock,_ huh?" He elbowed his brother with his joke then cracked up to himself.

Papyrus didn't answer at first, too busy gaping in horror at the sight -and the sound- of the human being roasted alive. In a second his open jaw clicked shut, and he turned to his brother with a furious scowl. "SANS! WHAT ON EARTH DID YOU DO?!"

Sans didn't even blink at his anger as he had been expecting it, but he had to admit, he was somewhat surprised at how intense it was. The damn kid must have left quite the impression on his brother if he was _this_ appalled at seeing them in pain, even after he realised that they'd been tricking him all this time.

"nothing." Sans shrugged, nonchalant. "i just gave your puzzles some upgrade."

"UPGRADE?! WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?! WHY IS THE HUMAN SCREAMING?!" Papyrus screamed, his booming voice only matched by Lessie's incessant barking.

"eh, probably because they're being tased with fifty thousand volts of electricity."

"FIFTY THOUSAND WHAT?! SANS, THOSE TRAPS WERE SUPPOSED TO BE JOYBUZZERS! THEY MAKE FUNNY SOUND, THEY MAKE YOU HAVE A MOMENTARY FUNNY BONES AND THAT'S IT!"

"and now they give a _hilariously_ ridiculous amount of pain too. how's that for a funny bone?" Sans chuckled.

"GAH! NO! STOP THIS! TURN IT OFF! TURN IT OFF!"

"it's just a few milliamps, dude. it's not gonna kill them."

"BUT THEY'RE IN PAIN!"

"well yeah, but don't you want them knocked out first? you know, to like, capture them?"

"NOT LIKE THIS! QUICKLY! TURN IT OFF!"

Sans sighed. "alright. you're the boss."

Sans pulled a small RC controller from his pocket and flicked one of the switches on it. The screaming instantly ceased, but the human did not fall down. If anything, the buzzing from the trap only got faster, more high pitched. "oops." He said as though he'd accidentally dropped his phone in the snow.

"SANS?!"

"i uhh… may have turned the amp up slightly by turning the voltage down. that's kinda dangerous." It was more than just dangerous. It was borderline lethal.

"THEN TURN IT DOWN AGAIN! TURN IT OFF COMPLETELY!"

"yeah, we should do that."

"THEN WHY AREN'T YOU!?"

"hm? oh right, i have the remote."

"SAAANS!"

Sans held up the remote again and made a show of examining the switches and joysticks for the correct functionality when in truth, he was observing the human spazzing about. He'd honestly never seen a person, a human or a monster, get electrocuted for so long. As a physicist it was a touch fascinating to see, and a small part of him wanted to watch for a bit longer. It was risky though, what with his brother watching over him.

Sans peered over at Papyrus, watching him bite and chatter his teeth on his gloved fingers in obvious distress. Shaking his head, Sans quickly fumbled with the remote, for real this time. Papyrus was right: he needed to switch this damn thing off now. This was just the first part of his plan with the kid. He needed them knocked out first, he couldn't have them dead just yet.

_i mean, dead is fine i guess, but alive is slightly better._

He flicked the large square switch marked 'Zap!'.

A loud metallic clang akin to that of an old Chinese gong echoed into the air. The buzzing cut off in an instant.

The human fell down to the ground without a word, quick and unceremonious, quite unlike their usually regal demeanour. Sans almost whistled, impressed. If he squinted, he could actually see some smoke coming out of their trembling body. "heh. nailed it." He chuckled.

"NAILED IT?!" Papyrus screamed back. "NAILED WHAT?! OH MY GOD, ARE THEY ALRIGHT?!"

Sans masked his annoyance behind a well meaning grin. "dunno. but hey, i think you did it man: you caught a human."

"I-! THAT'S-!" Papyrus froze. "Huh. I guess I did. I... caught a human. I did it. THAT'S GREAT!" He smiled, puffing his chest out. He then deflated faster than croaking frog, his smile collapsing into uncertainty. "Huh. I don't feel too great about it though."

"aw, it must be the shock from how happy you are."

"YOU THINK SO?"

"yeah, sure i do." Sans patted his shoulder. "why don't we go and collect the human, huh? and take them to the garage?"

"'CAPTURE ZONE', SANS. IT'S CALLED THE 'CAPTURE ZONE'!" Papyrus sighed. "WELL, I GUESS WE SHOULD. COLLECT THEM, I MEAN."

"don't worry bro. this is dream come true for you, you know? papyrus, the hero of underground. you'll be the most popular skeleton in the whole of underground. i can already hear undyne giving you a happy noogie."

"NYEH HEH. YEAH…" Papyrus let out a disheartened sigh, but began trudging towards the human without another word, his feet dragging across the snow despite the monumental event that was occurring right now.

Sans watched him go, his expression souring as the distance between them grew. He didn't say this often, but seeing his brother like this, it was pissing him off, big time.

That kid.

That _fricking_ kid.

Chara, the kid with 999 kills to their name.

What the hell did Paps see in them that he was acting like this? He understood that Paps couldn't see the numbers as he did but surely he could see how prickly the kid was? He was naive at times, but there's a limit to how blind you can be to others. You don't get chummy with a mass murderer. You _don't_ make friends with someone who can casually tries to kill a person the first time they meet. A mass murderer doesn't have nice personalities. Why the hell can't Paps see that?!

_crap_.

He needed to calm down. He hadn't been this on edge since his first stand up routine.

What was with that human and getting on his nerves? They hated his jokes, they tried to kill him on sight, and if he wasn't mistaken, that kid was probably going to be the one to get his hand cut off in the near future. 999 kills is not something you can achieve flippantly. Squashing a fly or similarly insignificant act don't count toward your kills. If someone from the future was going to send him a warning about anyone, it was this kid. They were a storm of the most violent kind, the textbook definition of an evil human that they taught children at school.

Sans took another breath, trying to keep his emotions in check. Being angry was tiring. Too much effort required. It wasn't something that he liked to do and wasn't something he could hold onto for so long.

_at least i stopped that future from happening now._ He thought as he watched the smoke come out of the human. _i did my job you little brat. you happy now?_

"HEY. HEY! YOU'RE ALRIGHT! OH THANK GOODNESS, YOU'RE ALRIGHT!"

Sans snapped out of his thoughts, blinking. He narrowed his eyes. _well shit._

There was a long, slow whined groan from the kid, their limbs languidly swimming about on the snow as though they were trying to crawl out of a thick puddle of mud. His brother took a step back as they began crawling on all fours, and eventually to a wobbly stand. They were hurt, there was no doubt about that, but they were still awake.

_crap._ He groused and called out, " _paps_." His stiff tone was bordering on a warning.

Papyrus' back jolted straight and he looked to him like a lost child. "OH. UM, R-RIGHT." He said and jogged over the dormant traps back to his brother's side. The moment he was was out of the maze, Sans flicked his RC remote again, bringing the puzzle back to life with a loud clang.

"Wh… what just… h-happened?" The kid stuttered out as they hunched over, their arms wrapped around each other as no doubt the tingling sensation of their muscles adjusting to the shock they received ran across their entire body. They raised their head and glared, lingering at Sans in particular. As expected, they were sharp. One shock and they already knew he had something to do with it. But then again, who else could it have been?

"sorry kid." He said without a hint of sincerity. "i changed the maze so that it reshuffles every time someone finishes it. trying to follow my brother's footsteps was a mistake."

"*GASP! WHICH WOULD MEAN THAT MY EXAMPLE OF THE ROUTE WAS IN FACT A TRAP ABOVE A TRAP! THAT'S INGENIOUS!" Papyrus said. "WAIT, BUT HOW DO I SOLVE THE PUZZLE NOW? I DON'T KNOW THE PATH ANYMORE!"

"huh, didn't think about that. i guess you need to turn the whole thing off if you want to cross."

"SAAANS!"

"C-clever." The kid hissed between their ragged breath, "M-m-mind if I try again?"

Papyrus frowned with worry. "I DON'T THINK YOU REALLY SHOULD IN THE STATE YOU'RE-"

"yeah sure." Sans shared a look with a shocked Papyrus. "but given how you don't have any clue as to where the traps are, i don't see how you'll solve-"

The kid waved their hand in an arc, quick and harsh as though they were throwing something away. From the edge of his perception, Sans saw three tiny pellets of red fly out of their hand and into the snow, right in the center of the maze.

What happened next came much too abruptly for anyone to react.

There was an explosion, a loud, earth shaking boom that was followed by a shockwave that hit Sans like a freight train. It pushing him off his feet and making him roll over and over like a man-sized tumbleweed. Before he knew it, the ground beneath him disappeared, and it took a moment for him to realise that he'd just rolled off the cliff.

_uh oh._ He thought when -at the same time- he came to an abrupt stop mid-air as his hoodie was caught in something. He looked up to find his brother holding onto him, lying flat on the ground by the edge of the ravine to minimise the explosion's effect.

"SAANS! WHAT IS HAPPENIIIING?!" His brother yelled over the unending rumbling.

"hang on, paps!"

Sans summoned his magic and wrapped both him and his brother in his blue aura. With a simple gesture of his hand, the two were flung upwards several feet into the air like a tennis ball. Once they were out of the blast zone, they both peered down at the maze below in amazement where a cloud of snow and dirt was still in the process of settling down after soaring two storeys up from the explosion.

"SANS, OVER THERE!" Papyrus shouted, pointing at the other end of the white snow cloud where they could see the green brown form of the human lying in the snow, a bit away from the blast. Apparently they weren't the only one that were affected by it.

Sans willed his magic to a slow descent towards the kid, floating him and his brother gently down like dandelion seeds in a soft breeze. By the time their feet touched the ground, most of the snow had settled down, and the human was pulling themselves back up to a stand once more. Papyrus stepped up to help but was held back once again by Sans.

The brothers shared a look, Papyrus in worry and Sans simply shaking his head.

The human eventually came to a full stand, exhaling loudly with strain. They gave the skeletons a once over, their glare lingering on Sans.

"It is done." They rasped.

Sans leered back, his grin cold. "what is?"

"The maze. I've solved it."

The brothers turned around to the said puzzle, where the snow had settled fully, revealing a crater of upturned electronics and broken wires, fizzling about as the electricity jumped from wire to wire.

"solved it? you _destroyed_ it."

"No one said I couldn't." They sneered.

"it goes without saying, doesn't it?"

"Like I care."

With that, the human limped past the skeletons and made their way to the other end of the maze, unhindered by the nullified traps.

Papyrus hesitated for several moment, bouncing his gaze between the human and his brother, lost as to what he should do. Finally, he took on a determined gleam and marched past his brother, and followed the human across the maze, calling out to them to wait up. Sans didn't stop him this time, knowing that Papyrus wouldn't have it any longer.

He turned his head around, looking at the puzzle that he'd actually bothered to modify for once that was now in complete ruin. There was no way that he was going to be able to salvage this metal scrap pile at this point. Him and Papyrus were going to have to rebuild it from scratch.

_one attack._ Sans mused. _one attack and they can level an entire field._

It didn't look like it took them much effort to do it either. One swipe at the air was all it took. He knew that the kid had the magic blade spells at their grasp, but to think they knew another spell of this calibre. It appeared that their magic was largely destruction oriented, and they were damn good at using it. These little puzzles that he modified? They weren't going to cut it.

Which meant that he had to go with phase 2 of his plan a bit earlier.

_man, what a pain._

He pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

"yellow?" He said after three ringtones. "yeah, sup… nah it's all good… so, you guys all ready? …cool. yeah about that, you see," Sans looked over his shoulder at the retreating human. "there's been a change of plan…"

* * *

Chara shuffled across the snow, their back hunched, their shaking arms wrapped around their waist. Their legs were sluggish, their mind a fog that buzzed about with random thought after random thought. It was difficult to remember what's happened at all, and they had to make a conscious effort to recall that they'd just been electrocuted... electrocuted by… by… _what was it?_

They stopped halfway, their hooded eyes searching about their surroundings for their companion. They were alone for some reason. Weren't they with someone just a moment ago?

_Child?_ They called out, their entire form wobbling back and forth. _Child, darling. Where did you go?_

They threw up, right there into the snow, a thick stream of green and yellow bile spewing out of their mouth as nausea hit them harder and faster than they could possibly react. They doubled over, gasping for air in a long winded wheeze. Their vision blurred, and they had to close their eyes for a moment to get their bearing back. The bitter taste in the mouth was sick, yet they couldn't even bring themselves to frown at it.

They took in a several more breath, letting the fresh oxygen charge up their body and mind. Finally, _she opened her eyes._

_The pain had finally ceased, her limbs loosening up after what felt like aeons._

_She groaned, her mind a foggy, buzzing mess as she tried to decipher the world around her. Peeling, yellowing walls surrounded her. A smell of anaesthetics stinging the inside of her nose like a cold needle. Screams and moans of sheer pain, despair and insanity booming in the distance. She had thought that she had finally expired, her body finally embracing what it should have years ago and ended her useless existence. But it appeared that that was still a dream for her. She was still alive, and she was still in this same hellhole._

_She twisted her limbs again, pulling on the coarse leather shackles that held her down on the chair. Her already tender skin rubbed painfully at the fabric, the metal frame circulating her head rattling erratically at the minuscule movement. How long had she been here, she wondered. She didn't remember. She had a hard time remembering anything. It was hard to think. The metal frame around her head was so hot. Someone was touching her. Were they caressing her cheek?_

" _Don' touc' me." She slurred out. There was something stuck in her mouth that was making her drool._

_There was a laugh. A laughter that she hates. It sounded like a dying hyena struggling for its last breath._

" _Looks like ya still got some fight in ya, eh?" A voice said. A familiar, cackling voice of a man. "Alright, you can stop zapping her doc. This is good enough."_

_There was a indignant grunt, and soon the hot metal band around her head was removed, as well as the piece of wet wood that'd been stuck in her mouth. The straps remained though. They still needed to make sure she wouldn't run away once she was free._

" _You know this is why I like you, sweetheart." The voice said with mirth. "Yer a real sweet young thing on the outside, but on the inside? Yer feistier than my nan. It's why you're my favourite. It's why I always look for you first even when there're other bat shit crazy bitches around."_

_A hand was touching her again, gently rubbed against the inside of her bare thigh like a sandpaper. She hated it. She hated it so much._

" _Don'... Don't touch me." She slurred out again, and the man laughed once more._

_Then without warning, rough fingers jammed into her center._

_Her limbs instantly froze, a cold fear clutching at her spine with its boney hands._

" _Have you been keeping this place clean for me? I can't wait to see how much hair you've grown here since last."_

_She tried to close her legs but his hand was so big, and she was so little. She couldn't do anything. She was helpless. Powerless._

" _F-fuck you. F-f-fuck you, you asswipe." She tried to sound angry, but tears were already welling up in her eyes, her sobs difficult to control._

" _Mm, I love it when girls don't wear undergarment under their clothes. Have you been waiting for me?" His breath was so close now, she could smell the cheap bourbon with each word he spoke._

_She would have scoffed if she was feeling humorous. As if she'd have undergarments on her. She was lucky to have the yellowed rag she called her 'dress'. "Fuck off, y-you pencil-decked bastard."_

" _Aw, don't be like that hon. You know you love it when I do this."_

_She winced. His fingers were so rough. With a yell she twisted her limbs violently, hitting her knee against something big. She heard the man grunt out in pain and his hand withdrew. For that instant she felt the joy of success, but it was fleeting and in the moment that followed, the man punched her in the gut._

_Her mind snapped out of consciousness for a moment before she was thrown into a world of agony._

_She tried so hard not to throw up. The maggots she ate an hour ago had been the first meal she had in three days. She wouldn't survive without it. She couldn't lose it. Not like this._

_She yelped as the man grabbed her hair and tugged her head back. For once her blurry eyes focused on something, and it was the man's scraggy looking face that seemed to be on a volcanic eruption. "Oh, sweetheart, you really shouldn't do things like that." He hissed with a faux sweetness that made her skin crawl. "After all the loving I showed you, this shouldn't be how you repay me."_

_She would have spat at his face if she was sure that he wouldn't punch her again. "Go to hell."_

_The man hummed. "Alright, I understand. I guess you really do hate me, huh? Maybe I should let you go then." He grinned, sly and wicked. "Maybe I should go visit one of your little friends instead, ey? How about that?"_

_Her blood froze in her veins. It was all coming back. Where she was. What she was doing here. All the little ones that were depending on her. "No. No! Don't you dare touch them!"_

_The man laughed. "Aw, but you don't like it when I do this. I wouldn't do that to my special girl now, I'm not completely heartless." His grin was so rotten, she could smell its sick stench from miles away._

_But what could she do about it?_

_Nothing._

" _N-no, please." She begged with a crooked smile. "I-I love it when you're here. I-I-I love it when you touch me."_

_The man made a show of uncertainty. "Are you sure? I wouldn't want to do this if you didn't like it."_

" _Y-yes! I-I was just kidding. Y-you know I love it when we play rough. Please, stay with me. Don't touch the others. They don't know how to please you like I do. Please!"_

_The man pretended to decide. She knew that he was most likely going to choose her over the others, but she always worried over that small possibility of 'what it', and he knew how to make her squirm with that fact. "Alright." He finally said, making her sigh in relief. "How about you open that pretty little legs of yours then, huh? I want to get you all wet and ready for me."_

_She bit the inside of her cheeks to stop herself from screaming out. She forced her trembling lips into a wide smile, and pulled her thighs apart as was told. Her heart was beating at a million miles per hour, slamming into her chest as though it was about to explode. Sometimes she wished that it would someday. Sometimes she wished that her heart would just stop already and let her free from this place._

_His hand reached for her again, and began stroking her core as gently as a dog bite. Soon he was kissing her, and the straps around her arms and legs were loosened. She could have escaped at this point, but she wouldn't. She would endure for the day. She would endure for the week, month, and all the years that was to come. She was doing this for the others. If the little ones didn't have to endure this because of her, it would be all worth it._

I will endure. I must endure.

_This was her life. And she was okay with this._

" _You're my whore, sweetheart. My hot pussy-ed little whore."_

_The man unbuckled his belt, and all she could do was to close her eyes, and try not to think about how scared she was._

"CHARA!"

The monarch blinked, the grimy room and alcohol stained breath disappearing from their mind like a tv screen flickering off. Snow was everywhere, the air cold and their body brittle. _Snowdin,_ they remembered. _I am at Snowdin. I am Chara Dreemurr. I…_

They turned around and saw Papyrus coming for them. Papyrus, who had been so helpful in their search. Papyrus, who had found out their true nature. Papyrus, who was now their enemy.

With a glare they summoned their blade, making the skeleton stop dead in his track. The two of them stared at one another for a long time, both studying one another for their next move. Chara didn't know what Papyrus was thinking but he didn't appear to be here for any fight or conflict. They wondered why he was here at all.

"Do you wish to fight me?" They asked.

"WHAT?" Papyrus said, appalled. "NO! OF COURSE NOT! I WAS JUST… I WAS… WORRIED."

Worried? Chara didn't understand. It didn't matter anyway. If he wasn't here to stop them then they weren't going to bother with him either. They turned and walked away.

"H-HEY, WAIT." Papyrus said chasing after them.

"What?" They hissed.

"YOU'RE HURT AGAIN. I KNOW THIS IS LIKE THE THIRD TIME I'M TELLING YOU THIS TODAY BUT YOU SHOULDN'T MOVE AROUND WITH AN INJURY LIKE YOURS."

"And what are you going to do about it? Offer me help again?" They spat, their nausea making them more irate than usual.

"I CAN… DO THAT, RIGHT?"

"Not if you wish to keep your job."

"B-BUT YOU'RE HURT!"

"I'm your enemy Papyrus." They snapped. "Do not show sympathy for me. It is unbecoming of a soldier."

They walked another four steps before they were stopped again. "WELL, I THINK YOU'RE MISTAKING MY WORDS FOR SYMPATHY WHEN THEY ARE CLEARLY NOT!"

They turned and glared, making Papyrus shiver. "Oh really?" They hissed.

"Y-YEAH! I-I MEAN YOU THINK I AM WORRIED? HA! AS IF! I'M JUST KEEPING MY WORDS WHICH IS WHAT ANY GUARD KNOW THEY MUST DO. I SAID I'LL HELP YOU IF YOU SOLVED MY PUZZLE, AND YOU DID! SO I'M GOING TO HELP YOU NOW UNTIL WE REACH THE NEXT SET OF MY PUZZLES!"

Chara strained to think on that one. "I… didn't solve your puzzle. I destroyed it."

"AND I NEVER SAID YOU COULDN'T!"

Normally they would have laughed, seeing the odd parallel to the conversation they had with Sans, but right now, they weren't in the mood. Right now, anger bubbled up. They clenched their fists tight.

"Stop."

Papyrus paused. "UMM, STOP WHAT?"

" _Stop._ " They growled again, their eyes burning. "Enough of this. Do not help me. Do not support me in anyway from this point onwards."

"BUT-"

"But _nothing."_ They cut him off. _"_ You and I are enemies now. Do you understand what will happen to your career if you help me now? Now that you know what I am?"

Papyrus frowned and didn't say anything, a sure sign that he was thinking and considering their words. It wasn't a verbal response but it was enough.

"Do not do this to yourself. Your conscience may encourage you now, but it will only lead to your downfall. I am not worth it."

Chara walked, and this time didn't hear the footsteps follow. A pang of sorrow hit them but as they'd been expecting it, they could brush it off unhindered. Helping them was the last thing Papyrus should be doing. He was a good soldier, with potential to become as great as he wanted himself to be. If he wasn't willing to sacrifice them to achieve that cause, the least he could do was walk away. It was better this way.

"Whoa. Did guys see that?"

Chara stopped, their arms tensing up, at the new unfamiliar voice. They raised their hooded eyes and studied the sight before them. A bipedal husky with a muscle shirt and leopard print pants was sniffing the air. Behind him, a pair of hooded dogs and a giant dog knight followed.

"I smell something..." One of the hooded figure said.

"...Smell something red." The other sniffed.

" _Bow wow."_ The giant knight barked in a deep booming voice.

"Yeah. I saw it move. Something short. Something… dangerous."

Chara blinked hard, their nausea coming back, and they cursed under their breath. They couldn't believe this was happening now. Of course it would happen now. 'Let's beat the little girl up and spit on her face' seems to be the trend of the day.

"I smell a human." One hooded figure said again.

"I smell our enemy." The other sniffed once more.

" _Bow wow."_

"Is this the one Lesser Dog was talking about?"

"Is this our target?"

At that moment, Lessie appeared from the centre and began barking happily around the human. He bounded over to them and gave their finger a friendly lick. Chara scowled down at him, unsure how to take his show of affection in this dire situation. Did he even realise what he'd just done?

"That's the human." The hooded figure drew his axe.

"Yes, Lesser Dog's saying this is the human." The other followed with hers.

" _BOW WOW."_ The knight slammed the base of his spear into the ground.

Chara froze. The tremor caused by the spear was shaking them off balance, a display of monumental power. They were in trouble. They were in _big_ trouble.

"Okay, you heard the big guy." The husky drew his swords which began flashing in blue. "Play time's over. We're dealing with a real human this time."

Chara took a step back despite knowing that there wasn't any road for them to run to. They gazed over their shoulder and saw Papyrus standing frozen stiff with a worried expression. They looked at him straight in the eyes and slowly shook their head.

"First dog to get the soul gets the treat!" The husky yelled.

It was the spark that ignited the bonfire of battle, and suddenly Chara found themselves under attack from four different directions at once.

* * *

Papyrus watched the fight with a mix of fascination, admiration, fear and panic.

He'd never seen the Royal Guards go all out as they were now. Having no real enemies to fight, all he'd ever got to see were sparring matches orchestrated by Undyne every afternoon. It was already a real spectacle to see those big shots going at each other for training, now to see them in true action, he was starting to realise how lackluster his own skills were.

And Chara… They were a good fighter from what he'd seen before, but right now, they were way out of their league.

The kid may have been strong for their size, but Dogamy and Dogaressa's axes were literally bigger than they were. If they tried to ever block that, the axe was just going to cleave them in half, blade, arm, and all. And the dog couple liked to come with a pincer attack from both sides, forcing Chara to either leap forward or back to dodge. It was a predictable movement, which made it that much easier to counter against.

The first time they were met with the pincer axe strike, Chara jumped back probably as a natural reflex, and ran straight into Doggo who had been waiting for them and who swiftly delivered a flurry of blue sword strikes.

Chara made the mistake of freezing up to let the strikes to pass through, and was immediately punished for it by Greater Dog and his ginormous fist flying into their side.

The human's reaction was fast enough for them jump away from the blow which had come so close that it brushed past the tip of their nose, but their movement caught Doggo's eyes and immediately they were under assault once more.

The dog couple's axes came down on them while they were dealing with Doggo, and when they made to avoid that, Greater Dog swung his fist and forced them to change course at a neck break speed.

It was a brutal gang up, perfectly organised with each member filling up the gap in the other's attacks.

Chara was not going to make it out of this one, no chance in hell. They needed help. They needed support. They needed…

_ME._

Papyrus blinked at the thought only for a second. He puffed out his chest, his target clear. He timed his movement, and jumped into the fray with all the intent and purpose to- "whoa bro. where do you think you're going?"

Papyrus' legs suddenly tugged back. He snapped his head down and found his limbs wrapped around a blue gravity spell.

"SANS! THE KID, THEY'RE-!"

"being attacked. yeah, i can see that."

Papyrus stared at his brother, to the fight, then back. "SH..SHOULDN'T WE DO SOMETHING?"

His brother looked at him with dead eyes. "do what?"

"HELP! THE KID'S BEING ASSAULTED! WE NEED TO HELP!"

"aand, why would we do that?"

Papyrus flapped his jaw. "BECAUSE CHARA'S A _KID!"_

"they're a human first."

"IT'S NOT FAIR THAT WE -THE PROUD ROYAL GUARDS- GANG UP ON A SINGLE CHILD LIKE THIS!"

"dude, paps. they're the enemy. we don't help the enemy."

Papyrus scowled at his brother. "AN ENEMY IS A PERSON OF DANGER. A PERSON WHO HAS A POTENTIAL TO HARM THE CITIZENS OF UNDERGROUND! CHARA IS NOT THAT! I'VE SEEN IT IN THEIR FIGHT WITH LESSIE!"

Sans sighed. "look bro, i get that you like them, but no matter what you think of them, they're the final piece. with their soul, our people can go free."

Papyrus hesitated to retort and Sans continued on.

"i get that it's hard for you but sometimes… sometimes a sacrifice must be made. it's just how things are. i get that it's a child's life hanging in the balance, but at the end of the day, it's one child's life versus a hundred's, a thousand's. we have children too on our side, remember? don't you think that they deserve to be happy? don't they deserve to see the surface world at least once in their life? doesn't everybody?"

Papyrus was quiet, his shoulder sagging as his earlier bravado died down.

He looked to the fight scene once more where Chara was now in a considerably worse situation than they were before. They were on their one knee, their arms and body ridden with small cuts. A twin trail of blood was streaming down their nose, and their eyes were already glazed over from exhaustion. They were about to lose, and with it, their soul will be the monsterkin's to possess. The barrier will break, their people will go free, and finally he would be out on the surface, driving a real genuine car, going places which he'd never seen. It would be his dream come true. It would be everybody's dream come true.

Slowly, Papyrus let go of his tense body, allowing himself to relax. To give up.

He was helping everyone's dream to come true.

This was his job.

" _I thought I was your friend."_

Papyrus staggered for a moment, his scowl loosening to that of surprise.

He looked down at his feet, up at the fight, then back to his feet again.

He raised his hands, and stared at the open palm.

_Everyone's dream come true…_

"YEAH… BUT NOT LIKE THIS."

"what?" Sans said, but instead of answering him, Papyrus launched into a sprint, disregarding his brother's calling.

* * *

Chara raised their arm to block what seemed like the thousandth sword strike from the husky, quickly followed by an axe swing, then a heavy punch by the big guy.

The bastards were faster, stronger, and far smarter than they gave them credit for. Individually they had their flaws which they might have been able to exploit, but together, they were superior to Chara in every possible way. Chara honestly could not even begin to think about a counter attack. And if they could not counter attack, there was no way that they could win was there?

They parried away the husky's blue blades away, yelling when the blade phased through their block and cut them across the cheek. They kicked in an attempt to trip him over, but the dog was much too agile for them, and they quickly found themselves sidestepping a direct stab from a long spear with a dog face on the blade.

The spear stopped, then swung side ways towards them, catching them from the side and flinging them away like a doll. They prepared themselves for a landing, knowing that there would be someone there to attack them the moment they were on their feet. They counted the enemies as they went by.

The husky was the furthest away, charging after them to keep up his relentless attacks.

The big guy was the source of the latest attack so he won't be striking them down so quickly again.

The hooded dog, they'd just went past so that one might be the one who will take the first shot at them upon landing. Strangely though, this hooded one was standing alone. He was usually standing along side his partner, a female one that stuck to his side like the child did to th-

"Here human."

The other hooded dog punched them in the gut, catching them in the air.

The whole world flashed white, and soon they found themselves falling, their adrenaline dissipating to nothing in a snap of a finger.

From the momentum they were going at, and the strength of the punch, Chara didn't understand how they were still conscious after the hit. It certainly would have been less painful if they'd just been knocked out. They landed in the snow in a trembling heap, their sluggish arms wrapping around their belly as their whole body curled in on itself.

Their eyes were wide but didn't seeing anything besides stars. Their mouth was wide agape but didn't even make a squeak. They simply shook. Their whole body simply convulsed in agony. They stayed like this until the dogs came to and surrounded them, and even then they didn't have the strength to get away.

It went without saying: They'd lost this fight.

"Ooh, nice one honey."

"Aw, thank you babe."

"Okay, can you guys not do that right now? I may be almost blind but I can totally see you guys kissing you know."

Chara listened as the group discussed how they should take them to their boss, whether they should kill the kid before or after. The monarch tried to crawl away, a last ditch effort to run away. They still had the child to save. They still needed to get to them. To apologise. To make sure that they weren't hurt and-

A foot stepped down on their back.

"Hey, absolutely no moving. _Capiche_?!"

Chara slumped into the snow, obeying the dog's command not because they wanted to but because they simply didn't have it in them to fight anymore.

They failed. They failed again. They always failed saving the little ones. They were surprised that they even got this far on their own actually. Perhaps they were a little proud of that, but it was overshadowed by the colossal cloud of self-loathing that loomed over them, laughing at them.

_Oh child…_ They sodded into their mind. _I'm so sorry… Please, forgive me…_

Their mind responded with silence. And it was at this point that they knew that they were truly lost.

They closed their eyes, resigning themselves to their fate.

* * *

There was a crack.

A sound of the earth opening up and the sheet of snow above being broken through by force. It was followed by several others just like it, creating an orchestra of things just… _breaking_ apart. Chara could barely keep hold of their waning consciousness to see what the ruckus was about.

"Bones?" One of the dogs said.

"Bones." The other concurred.

"Bones!"

" _Bow wow!"_

At first Chara thought they were dreaming. They had lost their consciousness and was finally having a dream where all the dogs that had attacked them were on their fours, chasing around a wave of bones that were sliding across the ground like a shark fin.

Then they were suddenly moving.

They were being held by someone. Someone tall and strong, and barely had a bit of flesh on him because every bit of his body was stabbing into them as though he was made of bones.

Made of bones…

_Wait._

"P.. Papyrus?" They wheezed out.

"HEY! I-I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO SAY, ALRIGHT?!" The skeleton suddenly boomed, making them wince as he was essentially screaming into their ear. "I KNOW YOU'RE GOING TO SAY, _'WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!'_ , ' _I AM YOUR ENEMY, PAPYRUS!'_ AND ' _OH MY GOD, PUT ME DOWN RIGHT THIS INSTANT!'._ BUT YOU KNOW WHAT?!" He turned to scream at them at the top of his lungs. " **I DON'T CARE!** _I'M_ THE ONE WHO SAW YOU FIRST! _I'M_ THE ONE WHO CHALLENGED YOU FIRST! YOU ARE _MY_ HUMAN! YOU ARE _MY_ TARGET AND _MY_ GOAL TO BECOMING THE ROYAL GUARD! I SAW YOU FIRST, _SO NO ONE'S TAKING THAT AWAY FROM ME!_ NOT _YOU_ , NOT _**THEM**_ , NOT _**ANYBODY**_! _ **GOT ANY QUESTIONS?!**_ "

Chara had several. Or they _would_ have had several if they had understood anything that he had just bellowed into their half conscious mind. But even with their barely open eyes and a mind that was holding on by a thread, they did understand one thing, and for that one thing they had only one thing to say.

"Thank… you…"

With that, their entire being gave away, body, mind and all. They slumped into the skeleton's hold, unconscious.

The tall skeleton looked at the kid's peaceful face, looking as though they were now asleep, finally free of all the pain. He smiled at the sight, and focused back to the road ahead and how to get out of the stupid predicament that he'd placed himself in.

"OH MY GOD," He gasped in horror. "UNDYNE'S SO GONNA FIRE ME."

* * *

"paps? paps!"

Sans searched the woods in which his brother had ran off to with the human in tow. He was too far gone for him to see now, his long legs taking him far in a blink of an eye. He was lost amongst the snows and the trees now, and Sans had no idea where he could be going, could not even begin to imagine what he was thinking.

Actually, that was a lie. He knew exactly what his brother was thinking: Justice, righteousness and duty. Everything that made his brother so… Papyrus.

_i love ya bro, but sometimes you're just… oh man, just_ sometimes _, you know what i mean?_

He turned towards the road behind him where, down the path, a pack of dogs were still chasing about the columns of bones that Papyrus summoned and left behind. It'll be a minute before they actually manage to catch enough of it to feed everybody, and another minute before they could eat it all. By that time his brother would have gone far enough that he could hide his tracks, and then it'll be a hard game to find him even with the dogs around.

"god damnit, paps." Sans groused.

His whole plan was falling apart rather quickly, and hindsight being twenty, he was starting to regret not teleporting Papyrus away the moment he began to show sympathy for the kid. He should have known that his brother's soft hearted nature would never allow a child -even an enemy- to die in front of his eyes.

Sans kicked the snow beneath his feet in frustration, but quickly quelled himself to start thinking again. He was a thinker after all. His plan failed? That's fine. He just needed to think about this for a moment. There was no problem that couldn't be solved with a bit of thinking. He just needed an idea, that's all. An idea was all it took. He needed an idea.

An idea.

He whipped his head to the side.

There was a snap of wood in a distance, followed by voices echoing down the forest beyond.

It wasn't Papyrus that was for sure, and though he couldn't make out the words, the voices were somehow familiar. Where had he heard that voice before?

He rushed through the trees, using his magic on himself to make his body light as a feather, not making a single sound as he moved through the snowed path.

He came into a clearing, and suddenly, his eyes went wide.

Then he grinned, wide and wicked.

An idea was good, but sometimes, opportunity was better.

And he'd just been given an opportunity of a life time.

_It looks like things are going to work out after all._

With a flash of his magic, Sans was gone, off to make his new plan a reality.

* * *

Chara opened their eyes, blood red eyes whisking back and forth.

Their surrounding didn't change even once.

"What in the…" They said, looking at the endless field of white, yellow and orange flowers that stretched as far as the eyes could see. They looked up at the orange sky, and the fluffy white cloud that looked more like cotton candy than actual clouds.

They looked down at themselves, at the clean pristine green shirt and brown pants that didn't have any of the wears and tears that it should have had after everything that they'd been through recently. They flexed their hand which Lessie had bitten down on and felt none of the lasting aches that lingered after they used their healing spells to fix their wound.

Something terribly odd was going on, that was for certain, and they weren't even sure where to even begin to find out what.

They first began with a surveying left and right, trying to see if there was anything else here besides the flowers that they were going to get a nasty hay fever from if they stayed for too long. They then turned around to check behind them to do the same.

They froze at that moment. Because right there behind them, was a figure. A figure that they'd been hoping to meet for what appeared like aeons now.

That was when they realised that this was a dream. It had to be a dream, because how else could they explain their mysterious displacement to this… _place_?

But for a dream, they were so strangely conscious of that fact. And for a dream, everything they do appeared so very real.

And so they decided to take a chance, to give themselves that hope that this was _not_ a dream, and called out:

"Child?"

The figure whipped around faster than a flash of a camera, and the two of them both froze at each other's sight.

Deep brown met blood red.

"Ch… Chara?"

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: And that's it for today!**
> 
> **Honestly, I was wondering if I should add those last two scenes in this chapter, but they didn't really fit in the next either so I just said YOLO! and added it regardless. At least its an appearance of Frisk which many of you have been asking for, so happy late Halloween?**
> 
> **I know I keep saying 2 weeks until next chapter, but it's not so much a hard deadline as it is just something to push me to NOT delay for another 5 months. I'll always do my best to reach that 2 weeks mark though! I do hope that I can actually make it some day :(**
> 
> **Anyways! Please leave a review if you have the time and thanks for reading!**
> 
> **See you all in two weeks (Read "three to five weeks")**
> 
> **Ciao!**
> 
> **Ideas abandoned for this chapter: South Park references. MLP: FiM references. Dr StrangeLove references. References to shows about how to/not to do references. Just references. Lots and lots of references that I shouldn't have made because they were very dumb. I'm glad these are gone.**
> 
> **Up next: Things are settling down for a bit... maybe.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Hello everyone! I'm that lovely person that drops off the face of the earth for several months despite promising otherwise! I'm back with another chapter that I really don't think is ready for public eyes, but I'm throwing it out there because I promised someone I will, and I'm not willing to break that promise due to my stupid anxiety.**
> 
> **I must deeply apologise to everyone for the massive delay. My life has gotten... unexpectedly difficult since last year, but I do feel like things are getting better nowadays, so hopefully that means more updates! :D**
> 
> **Thank you to everyone who has left me encouraging comments regarding this story. It makes me overjoyed that you read and like my story, and it also makes me increasingly horrified that I haven't updated this thing for as long as I have.**
> 
> **Let's hope that I can fix that and stick to a scheduled, like the good old days when I started this thing back two years ago.**
> 
> **Anyway, that's enough of my mad rambling which I'm only continuing to delay publishing this chapter!**
> 
> **On with the show!**

* * *

The two humans stood frozen, each staring at one another with wide, disbelieving eyes. It was Chara who moved first, rushing forward and touching the child's face. They placed both palms on the little one's cheeks and gazed into their brown eyes.

They couldn't believe it. They could feel them, hear them: the softness of their flesh, the sound of their gentle breath. They were here. The child was _here_ _,_ and Chara could honestly say that they had never felt so confused in their entire life.

They had no idea where they were, no idea when or how they'd gotten to this place. What happened to their injuries? What of Snowdin? Papyrus? The dogs? It was as though the child had reset time, but it seemed unlikely given how this was the first time Chara had ever seen a place like this: these wide fields filled with flowers. And the sky! They hadn't seen the sky in over a year. This was not a reset. They don't ever remember being in a place where the sky was yellow like this. So where were they?

_Does that really matter?_ They thought. _Look who is before you._

Yes, perhaps it didn't matter at all where they were. Frisk was here. Here, right before them; their long wish come true. How many times have they wished for this? How many times have they wished for a second chance with a little one they've wronged? If they could put each of their wish on a paper, the parchments would pile up to make a mountain. They never came true these wishes, but now that one has they had no idea what they should do or say.

And so they didn't come up with an idea and allowed their body to do whatever it wanted.

Without another second's wait, they pushed out their arms and took Frisk in a tight embrace. They lifted the child up and spun around, laughing out loud when Frisk gasped and hugged them back in surprise.

"Child." They said, breathless. "Oh child, darling! You..! You're here! You're actually here!"

The two of them spun, and Chara, so enthralled by their joy, almost tripped over and squeaked as they stumbled back, dragging the frightened child along. They laughed again when Frisk tensed up, their joy unceasing. When they finally decided to set the child down, their face was starting to hurt.

They ran both hands over Frisk's cheeks again, caressing them like a prized jewel as they looked down with a gentle smile. They expected to see Frisk do the same, expected to see the same old foolish grin the child was so prone to show. They thought the child would be overjoyed to see them, just as much as they were at least. Perhaps that was why they were so surprised then, when all they saw on Frisk's little face was a frown; a sad frown that looked up at them for a brief second before dropping down to the floor.

The child's arms slowly pulled away, and without a word, they stepped back.

"Child?" Chara said, following Frisk's odd behaviour with growing confusion. "Are you alright? Did you get hurt?"

Frisk didn't say a word. They didn't even open their mouth to _attempt_ at answering.

No. Instead, they turned on their heel and walked away, leaving Chara to stand in the middle of the strange flower field, alone and confused.

* * *

#  **Chapter 13**

For a moment, Chara was speechless, their mouth hanging wide as they helplessly watched the little one go, too stunned to even react.

"Ch-child! Wait!" They yelled after them, snapping out of their stupor and giving chase.

Frisk did not stop. If anything, they seemed to make a conscious effort to defy the request and took off into a sprint. Though flabbergast by the child's action, Chara did not let up and they rushed ahead, using their longer legs to catch up.

They grabbed the child by the shoulder, to stop them, to turn them around. It almost worked too. But in that moment, as soon as their fingers touched the blue fabric of Frisk's shirt, Frisk's shoulder puffed and turned into smoke, exploding into a cloud of blue and purple mist that slipped past between their fingers.

Chara gasped and skidded to a halt, quickly pulling their hand back. They watched as the smoke rose into the air in a thick curtain, stop, then slowly snake back to where it came, reforming into the child's shoulder as though nothing had happened.

They gaped, their jaw working aimlessly.

They tried again, reaching their hand out and grasping Frisk by the arm this time. But like before, their hand passed straight through, through their arm and straight through the torso as well, leaving a trail of smoke across Frisk's body which languidly pulled back into its original form only after a moment.

Chara stepped back and stared.

Silent, the child stared back.

"What is the meaning of this?" The monarch asked, their breath hushed, their hand clenching and unclenching. They hadn't felt even a bit of the child in their palm when they touched, no warmth nor texture in the thick smoke that was the child's body. It was as though Frisk only existed visually; an illusion.

The child didn't answer, their head still hung to the ground, their entire form stiff and not in the least bit welcoming. It was a stark contrast to how they usually acted in Chara's presence. Hadn't the child always been ridiculously happy just to have them near? The two of them may have been apart for some time, but given that Frisk had most probably spent the said time in a frozen stasis, it was unlikely that this fact has changed since. So why were they acting like this? Rather than welcoming, the child appeared as though they didn't want to deal with them at all.

It was as though they were strangers or something.

It was as thought the child thought Chara was out to hurt them.

" _Did you have a good reason for doing that as well?"_

Chara froze.

The child's words from the past came back to them like a dagger to the heart. It was followed by a flash of all the events leading up to it: The meeting with Sans, the argument, the… _slap_. Was that what this was about? Did the child think that they were still angry at them for speaking out of line?

Swallowing, Chara felt for their connection within their SOUL, hoping to find out the truth. And if the child truly was scared that they would hurt them, they hoped to share their emotions and let the little one know just how happy they were to be reunited, just how sorry they were for the things they did and how they would never do such a thing ever again. They wanted to show the child all the things they didn't think they could ever convey with simple words.

Unfortunately for them, when they sought it out, they found their link blocked, guarded by a cold invisible wall they were sure had never been there before, even during their time apart. They winced, knowing that the child had raised the barrier themselves, disconnected them forcibly. Though the privacy of one's own mind was something Chara could respect, it still felt like they've lost something: a right to be linked to the child in this intimate way. They've been pushed away, and rightfully so.

"Child." They said, approaching Frisk cautiously like one would a frightened pup that was moment away from running away. If the child wasn't going to let them convey their emotions through their heart, they were going to have to do this the old fashion way. They just hoped that the child was feeling unguarded enough for a proper conversation. "I… understand why you're wary of me right now. We haven't left things on the best of terms and our parting had been so… so _abrupt_. But I want you to know: I'm no longer upset. I'm not angry anymore, so please, don't push me away. Let us continue our-"

"No."

Chara froze again. The child had finally spoken, but it wasn't out of relief nor joy. They had taken a wary step back and was now looking at Chara with quivering lips and tearful eyes.

"Child?" Chara said, stepping forward.

"No!" Frisk took another step back, cowering away like a frightened pup. "No. Stay away. You'll hurt me. Stay away!"

"Hurt you?" Chara rasped, watching in horror as the child began to sniffle. "No, darling, I don't want to hurt you anymore, don't you see? I-I want us to be friends."

"You said that before." The child sobbed. "You said we were going to be friends, and then you hurt me again. You always hurt me. I don't know how to stop it. Why can't I stop it? Why? _Why?_ " The child's sniffling voice turned into a low mutter as they spoke. By the end, it was as though they weren't even speaking to anyone. They were just whispering to themselves, sad and incoherent.

Chara worked their jaw, but no words came out. Their heart broke at the hopelessness in the child's voice, yet at the same time they couldn't deny any of what the child had said. They _have_ said those words before. They've proposed to the child that they start calling each other friends, and not an hour later, they had gone and hurt the child.

Ever since their meeting they've hurt the child, again and again, without proper rhyme or reason. It wasn't that they wanted it to happen, however. It all just happened at the spur of the moment, and if they were honest with themselves, they had brushed it all off. They'd forgotten about it in the back of their mind, thinking it was nothing, thinking that the child was infinitely forgiving; infinitely enduring. Why should _they_ worry about the things they did if the child themselves didn't give much thoughts about it either?

How ignorant they had been.

The latest iteration of their cycle of hurt and reconcile seemed have been one cycle too much for the child; for them both. Chara had felt it when they had done it: the moment their palm had shot out and struck the child's cheek, something inside them broke. For the first time, they had felt guilt for their action, and now they realised that for the first time, the child felt true hopelessness for their action as well.

How funny it was, after all the torture and murder performed, it was a mere slap that had broke the camel's back.

"Child, I…" They began but was quickly cut off by what the child had to say.

"Why are you here?"

"I'm sorry?" Chara blinked.

"Why are you _here_?" The child repeated, and their words had been said in such a low, angry growl, Chara barely recognised the voice. "I didn't invite you here. How did you get here?"

"I… I don't know." Chara answered in a hushed whisper, stunned at the burning anger behind the child's eyes. "I-It wasn't my intention to come here. I… I simply did."

"Liar." The child spat, making Chara flinch from the stinging hate, "You're lying. You can't come here without my permission. I never invited you here! You're lying!"

"But I'm not."

"You ARE!"

Chara didn't answer. They swallowed the hard lump in their throat, avoiding the child's scorching gaze. "I don't know what you want me to say."

The child's seething breaths hitched then, and even without looking, Chara could tell that what they had said had struck a nerve. They just weren't sure which nerve that was.

They waited for the child to say something, to yell at them again perhaps; to insult them or to tell them exactly why they were so enraged.

But the child didn't say anything.

There was a single, barely audible sob in the air.

Then, the little one began to cry.

The sound of their sorrow echoed into the empty air, filling it, making it so heavy that it was difficult to breath. Chara continued to hang their head, unable to help, unsure if their help was even wanted.

But then the child sobbed out their name, "Chara…" and Chara snapped their head up faster than a gun trigger.

" _Yes?"_ They were about to say, their heart filling with hope that perhaps the child was about to give them a chance. But the child went on without pause, and suddenly, all the hope that had filled them whooshed out of them like the air of a loose balloon.

"Chara, where did you go? I miss you. Come back to me. Please."

It was a low whisper, those words. They shouldn't have been able to pick it up, barely should have even noticed what the child had said. They certainly didn't think the child had meant for them to hear it. But at that moment, when the child spoke, they had heard it all, every single word as though they had spilled down from the sky itself like thunder, blowing away every other sound in existence.

_Chara, where did you go?_

_I miss you._

_Come back to me._

Perhaps in a world where Chara was not as sharp as they were, or perhaps in one where they were a bit full of themselves, the monarch might have said, _"I'm right here, darling."_

But this was not one of those worlds. This Chara wasn't so dull sensed, nor blinded so much by their self importance. This Chara heard those words just once, and immediately understood what the child was saying.

The child wanted Chara.

The _other_ Chara.

The nice one. The one who cared, and loved, just as the child was deserved.

The child wanted the Chara who wasn't so fucked up in the head.

They wanted the Chara _this_ Chara couldn't be.

Chara shuddered, their insides feeling numb. They wondered what their face looked like right then. They prided themselves in their ability look stoic in a fight, to never show an ounce of pain or fear in face of an enemy. But Frisk wasn't an enemy, nor were the two of them in a fight. They guessed they must have looked something awful: a pale face, wide eyes and a distraught frown, like a corpse that had been stabbed in the heart. They certainly wished they had been. Then they wouldn't be feeling this horrid guilt rotting in their gut anymore.

"Child…" They started again but quickly trailed off.

They didn't know what to say; what they _could_ say. What could they say to a child grieving over someone who no longer was?

What could they say, when _they_ were the faulty replacement causing all of this grief?

They wanted the child to know that they have changed: They had made friends with new monsters, despite the rough start. They chose to be kind when they had perfectly valid reason to be angered and be cruel. And since their separation, they had regretted the things they had said and done to the child. They wished to repent. From the bottom of their heart, they _needed_ to repent.

But now all those changes seemed so superficial, so benign that it wasn't even worth the notice. Not when compared to the _other_ Chara, the one that Frisk wanted and _needed_ right then.

_I'm just a placeholder._ Chara thought, their heart hollow. _Why did I even try?_

" _BECAUSE YOUR FRIEND IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO YOU!"_

Chara blinked, something inside them clicking as the voice of a certain, boisterous skeleton echoed in their mind.

" _I find them more annoying than anything."_ Their own voice continued. _"I wanted them gone when we first met. I hated the fact that they were here."_

_"BUT YOU THINK DIFFERENTLY NOW, RIGHT?"_

A scoff. _"Because they clung onto me like a bad flu! They insisted on us being together, no matter how much I rejected them, and I just… I don't know. I gave up."_

_"AND…? DO YOU REGRET THAT DECISION?"_

The voices stopped, and Chara realised that they had never answered Papyrus on that question: Did they regret stop trying to push the child away so much?

They wanted to say the answer was 'yes'. There were so many reasons for them to regret their decision: What the child was feeling now, the hurt they've been through, their kidnapping. It all could have been prevented, if Chara had simply endured and pushed the child away until they left.

But in their heart, they knew it wasn't so simple. It wasn't their own actions that Chara regretted. What they regretted was the fact that their decision had lead to the child going through so much pain and sorrow. If Chara had pushed the child away completely at the beginning, Chara certainly wouldn't be feeling this regret, but the pain the child went through would have been the same, and that was something the monarch couldn't live by. Not as they were right now.

The child would have been in pain -the child _was_ in pain- and Chara wasn't going to stand by it.

They repeated the question in their mind: _Why did I even try?_

_"YOU OBVIOUSLY CARE ABOUT THEM!"_

Yes.

They cared about the child. They _didn't_ regret their decision to not push the child away. They weren't happy about it yet, but they see the potential. They weren't going to let a single child be hurt under their care, and if one _had_ been hurt, it was their responsibility to make it right.

"Child," They started, swallowing the lump in their throat and standing tall. "I… know that I do not have any right to demand things of you; I know that I've wronged you before. I know that I've put you through… so many things that caused you grief and suffering that you have every right to ignore me and walk away, but I implore you to listen to me now. What I must say is of great importance, to both you and me."

They paused and gauged the child's reaction. Frisk hadn't turned away, thankfully, and was now watching them, a spark of curiosity in their crying eyes. _Good,_ Chara thought, and they breathed in a few more times before they continued with what they considered to be the most important words they would say in quite some time.

"I… _I'm_ _sorry_." They shuddered the words under their breath. "I'm so sorry, little one. I'm so sorry that I slapped you. I'm so sorry that I've hurt you so many times, in so many ways, over and over. I shouldn't have done it; any of it. You were only trying to help me after all. You wanted to be my friend, and I hurt you in return. You didn't deserve what I did to you in the least. I understand that now. I understand…" They swallowed their dry throat, clenched their fists tight, and gave Frisk the kindest, warmest smile they could muster. "I beg you for your forgiveness now. Please come with me. Let us travel together once more. We will free the monsters, just as we had planned. You and me: partners. I promise I will never hurt you ever again."

Chara held their breath, and they stretched their hand out and offered it to Frisk who stared at it with wide eyes.

There it was.

They'd done it.

They said the words they needed to say, and Frisk, who had probably only thought of the worst of their partner so far, was stunned into silence.

Something inside Chara lifted then, their shoulder feeling lighter, their stomach less tight. For the first time in awhile, they felt good about themselves. They felt like they've done something right for a change.

Too bad it was then, when it soon became apparent that Frisk didn't share the same sentiment.

Though at first seemingly in awe of the apology and the offer of peace, Frisk's face soon collapsed into the same pouting frown as before, perhaps into one that was even worse. Their lips quivered again, their eyes welling with fresh tears. And when they opened their mouth to speak, what they had to say seemed to hurt them with each word.

"I don't believe you." The child said. "I… I don't think I can."

Chara… stared, their face pale, their eyes wide with disbelief, stunned at the unexpected result.

"I… I see…" They managed to mutter, and they took back their offered hand in a jerky motion, holding it to their chest and just… leaving it there. They didn't know what else to do with it. They didn't know what to do. Period.

"I'm sorry." The child sniffled, and they sounded so genuinely apologetic, it made it clear that they had been genuine in what they said before as well: they honestly didn't believe the apology was true.

"No, it's quite alright." Chara quickly reassured.

But it wasn't alright.

Nothing was.

"I'm hurting you." Frisk sobbed.

"No, don't you worry about that now." Chara mustered up a smile. "It's nothing compared to what I've done to you, I'm sure. And I understand why you don't believe me. I wouldn't believe it myself. I am an awful person after all and I'm…" They choked, their throat closing up before the torrent of self-hating words could spill out. They smiled toothless, their red eyes misting up with tears. "I… I'm alright. You don't need to worry."

The child dropped their gaze, ashamed. "I'm sorry I yelled."

"Stop it." Chara said, and their voice had been harder than they had intended, despite their best intentions. It was just that they didn't want to hear it. They knew they were awful, and the child was a saint. To have Frisk apologise to them now was… _insulting_ at best. It felt like dirt being rubbed against their face.

The child flinched back at their retort, and Chara couldn't look anymore. Everything they said and did seem to hurt the child more and more. Perhaps if they were truly sorry, they'll simply leave the child be.

"I'll go." The words echoed in the air, but to Chara's shock, it wasn't them who had said it.

"Go?" The monarch turned, their eyes questioning.

But when they looked, the child was already gone.

At first they didn't understand. They blinked several times to see if they had made a mistake, if they were simply seeing things incorrectly or if they'd somehow turned around and was looking at the wrong direction. But no, what they first saw was true. Frisk had disappeared, and where they once stood was a small patch of flower pressed into the ground by someone who was no longer there.

"Child?" Chara called again. "Child?!"

They turned around, looking, searching for a glimpse of the little one, for any sign of blue and purple in the midst, a tail-end of a brown hair.

Nothing.

The child was gone, and Chara was alone.

All alone.

They stumbled, fell on their knees, then fell on all fours. The flowers beneath them rustled with the motion, but it was only for a moment. The flowers had already stilled as though the monarch wasn't there, pink clouds above floating by with cold indifference. Chara felt their heart crumble apart, but the world around them ignored it all, as if to mock them of the futility of their pain.

_The child is gone_ , it said to them. _The child is gone, and there's nothing you can do to change that._

_You idiot._ _What the hell did you expect?_ The voices spat, adding on to the harsh jibes.

_You've hurt them so much, poor little Frisk._ One voice said.

_This is all your fault!_ The other spat.

_You're so fucked up. Why would anyone ever want to be with a psychotic whore like you?_

Chara bit down a sob, tears filling their eyes as the voices' last words repeated in their mind.

_Why would anyone ever want to be with a psychotic whore like you?_

They had nothing to say to that. Nothing. What on earth were they thinking speaking to the child like they had any right? How dare they beg for forgiveness like they ever deserved one?

_Whore._

They knew they weren't meant for nice things.

_**Whore.** _

They knew they were tainted.

_**WHORE.** _

They knew that people will only ever hate them.

_Poor little whore, only ever good at two things: Spreading your legs and receiving hate._

They looked down at their hands, their palms where the soft brown soil had smeared all over. It was dirty, so dirty that they feared the taint would never come off. They knew how to hide it of course, clean the dirt off, rub it with soap and clean towel to cover it from the world's eyes. They could wear clean clothes, comb their hair, speak like a high born, parade around as a princess and act like they were worth something to someone.

But who were they fooling in the end?

_Once a whore, always a whore._

_Why are you even alive?_

"I don't know…" They answered. But when they looked around, there was no one there to hear them. No one to berate them nor comfort them. They were alone.

All alone.

Silently, they fell on their side, their strength seeping out of them like water over a drain. As they looked up at the orange sky above, listened to the absolute soundless air, the emptiness in their own mind, they began to cry.

* * *

Hours went by. Or perhaps it was mere minutes. Chara didn't know. They didn't have a watch, nor did they have any other method of telling the time. The sky was still bright, but the sun was hidden behind a thin fog so they couldn't tell if it had moved or not. The flowers swayed gently, ever so silent, all of them bloomed up to its full as though it was still morning. There was nothing here to tell them the time. There was nothing here, period, from one end of the horizon to the other. The child was still missing, and they were alone.

Chara had long curled up into a ball, their eyes red and puffy with dried tears. They hadn't moved an inch since they'd fallen down. They didn't see any reason to. They were perfectly content just lying there and rotting away.

_What are you doing?_

They curled up tighter. The voices had faded away for awhile, but it appeared that it wasn't done with them.

It never was.

_What are you doing?_ The voices repeated. _Get up. Stop being so pathetic and get up._

A command. One they didn't want to listen to. The voices told them so many things, ordered them to perform acts both benevolent and heinous that it was often difficult to tell if they should listen or not. But the voices never abandoned them. It always stuck by their side and guided them through existence, no matter how hurtful or horrid their life was. The voices had always kept them alive, and so Chara unfurled themselves and stood up, facing the silent world even though their limbs fought them the whole way.

"Now what?" They mumbled, despite knowing that they shouldn't. Talking back to the voices only made it louder. Yelling at it only made it yell back. They shouldn't be indulging the voices so much. But who else could they talk to?

_Everyone you love gets hurt._

_Don't talk to them._

_They don't deserve to talk to you._

_**No one deserves to talk to a useless slut like you.** _

Chara gulped, then nodded. The voices were right. They didn't need to talk to anyone else. How could they ever give anyone the displeasure of such horrid task? They just needed themselves. They were fine on their own. They survived on their own.

_**Walk.** _

They did.

They walked for miles ahead, wading through the ocean of seemingly endless flowers. That notion was soon disproven however when eventually the flowers became more and more sparse. The pink clouds faded away into black, and the ground beneath them turned from brown soil into grey stone.

Before they knew it, Chara found themselves standing before a familiar looking wooden door surrounded by a tall stone wall that stretched on beyond the horizon on each side. They frowned at the round doorknob before them, studied its shape, its position, and the odd blotch marring its golden skin. It was a doorknob they'd seen before so many times in their life.

They reached out and grabbed it, laying their thumb over the blotch as they'd always done, and twisted it open.

The door pushed inwards without a single creek, and they froze at what they saw behind it.

"A… Asriel?"

Inside his, or rather, _their_ room, Asriel looked up from the toy fire truck he'd been rolling on the ground and smiled his toothless smile.

" _ **Chara!"**_ He greeted with joy. _**"Where did you go? I was waiting for you forever! I almost thought we wouldn't have breakfast together."**_

Chara didn't answer. They couldn't. Their brain had short-circuited. They didn't move, didn't even blink. They studied the boy's face, his flawless white fur, his clothes, red eyes, and his mouth that had such prominent overbite that his fangs constantly showed like that of a bat. It was the face of their brother, exactly as they remembered.

" _ **Chara?"**_

Chara blinked. Before they had realised, Asriel had stood up and was now standing right before them, giving them a curious look. They nearly tripped backwards at the sudden proximity, but they managed to keep their stance and compose themselves enough to speak.

"Asriel?" They said dumbly.

The boy smiled, and they could not help but be awestruck at the familiar sight.

" _ **Howdy. Finally waking up, sleepy head? You shouldn't go taking naps so early in the morning. That's almost like sleeping in, you know?"**_

Chara couldn't help it. Their hand rose, reaching forward to touch the boy's furry cheek. They could almost feel it now, the soft, warm fur of their brother's skin. How they loved touching it when they were together. He was like a big fluffy doll waiting to be hugged in the cold, then swiftly discarded in the heat. But an inch away from contact, Chara blinked. Reality came back, and they quickly whipped their hand back to their chest, retreating.

" _ **What's wrong?"**_ Asriel asked, and Chara shook their head at the way he had spoken, the way he smiled and looked at them with those warm, twinkling eyes. It was all so real. But…

"No. Th-this is impossible. This cannot be."

" _ **Uhh? What's impossible?"**_ Asriel tilted his head, looking genuinely confused, and for a moment Chara almost wished that it was real. They wished everything that had happened the past few days was all just a lucid nightmare and they were starting to wake up. But they knew that it wasn't to be.

"You are." They said, still holding their hands to their chest. "You're not real. You're not here. You can't be."

Asriel backed up and looked at them strangely. _**"O…kay?**_ _**I guess you're not really that much awake yet, huh? Come on Chara, focus! This is our home! Why wouldn't I be here?"**_

"Because…" Chara shivered as they were reminded of the cold truth. "Because you're dead."

" _ **Oh, am I?"**_ Asriel laughed as though it was all a big joke. He made a show of looking down at himself, checking his arms, legs, then turning around to check his tail which he wagged twice just to make sure it was still there. With a small giggle, he turned to Chara again with a big smile. _**"Huh. Would you look at that? I guess I AM dead. Who's fucking fault is that, I wonder?"**_

Chara froze, their eyes wide.

Asriel was smiling at them, the same warm, kind, innocent smile that he always wore. But what he'd just said. Did they mishear?

Suddenly, their brother laughed; a loud, heartful laugh that made Chara's own heart twist with yearning. _**"Gee, it was a joke, silly. Of course I'm not dead."**_ He reached out and took Chara's hand in his own. _ **"Come on, let's go see what Cook made for us today. I'm starving!"**_

Before they could protest, Asriel pushed past them and ran out the door, dragging them along. They almost pulled back, their jumbled mind remembering where they were and the fact that they weren't technically in their room in the castle. But before they could even think of what to say, their jaw went slack at the long hallway that greeted them outside. No longer were the black and pink clouds floating above, no longer were ocean of flowers dominating the world beyond. What they found was the stone hallway of their home, the castle, with magic lighting, purple carpets and all. Chara struggled to follow their brother's lead as their already scrambled mind became even more addled to a point where they were questioning whether 'up' was really 'up' anymore.

" _ **Ah!"**_ Asriel suddenly yelped as he skidded to a stop before a tall stack of towels hovering in the air.

" _ **Oh, goodness! Pardon me, your highnesses. Didn't expect you two to be running around so early in the morning."**_ A Whimsum maid with a Scottish accent peaked her head around the towels she was carrying. She was someone Chara remembered particularly well due to her unusual accent and the fact that she was one of the very few Whimsums who didn't freak out whenever they walked past them. She was a friendly face, and it tugged at their heartstring seeing her again.

" _ **Sorry. We'll watch where we're going from now on. Do you need some help?"**_ Asriel said, ever so polite.

" _ **No no, it's quite alright. I may not look the size but I can handle my job quite well! I should just fly a bit higher then, aye?"**_

" _ **Cool. Carry on, then."**_

" _ **Of course**_ _ **, Prince Asriel. Oh and, Princess Chara**_ _ **?**_ _ **"**_

"Y-yes?" Chara stuttered, their manner kicking in above their bewilderment.

" _ **Would you still like your battledress to be cleaned like you asked? The lasses told me they're ready to do as soon as they have your say."**_

"Oh. O-of course, please do. Thank you."

" _ **My pleasure, ma'am. Fare-thee-well."**_ The maid dipped her head the best she could without tipping over the laundry before buzzed into the air where she could continue her work without the worry of bumping into anyone. Chara watched her go, flying down the hallway and vanishing into the darkness beyond so abruptly that they wondered if she had literally vanished from existence.

"What on earth…"

" _ **Come on, Chara, we're almost there!"**_ Asriel said, and began dragging them across the hallway again, passing several familiar doors and servants before they found the kitchen.

" _ **Good morning, Cook!"**_ Asriel announced as they entered.

Cook, an old Parsnik with wilting brown snakes for a hair whipped around to face them. The snakes on her hair all stood up and began hissing at them en mass. " _ **Bah! What on earth are you brats doing here?!"**_ The monsterscreeched with a scornful frown.

" _ **We just wanted to know what**_ _ **'**_ _ **s for breakfast."**_

" _ **Well, there IS no breakfast! Like I'll ever feed you rascals any scrap. Leave or you'll get a good smacking with my spoon!"**_

Asriel giggled, ignoring the harping monster and walking over to the stove to sniff the air around it. " _ **Ooh, waffles!**_ _ **"**_ He clapped. _ **"Chara look, it's waffles! Ow!**_ _ **"**_

Asriel ducked as Cook swung her wooden spoon at him once more with one of her hair snakes. The boy ran back, hiding behind Chara with a sullen frown.

The Parsnik chased him down, hopping on her legless bottom until she was within range to swing her spoon at Chara.

Chara grabbed the offending kitchen appliance mid-air out of pure instinct and they blinked when Cook's other hair-snakes began hissing at them.

"C-cook, please, you know we mean no harm." They said, the same phrase they had used many times over when the Parsnik got mad at them or their brother.

" _ **You are harming my cooking just by existing in this kitchen! I don't need you two stinking up the air! It'll rot the ingredients!"**_

"I'm… quite sure that we don't have such powers at hand."

" _ **Yeah! You're just mad because we like mum's cooking more than yours!"**_ Asriel protested, then cowered back further with a squeak when Cook's snakes whipped towards him.

"He doesn't mean that." Chara sighed. "We love your cooking just as much as mother's. She's just better than you with her snail dishes just as you are better than her at every other dish."

" _ **It's why I'm the cook."**_ Cook yanked back her spoon out of Chara's grasp. _**"I'm glad at least one of you is smart enough to realise that. Now get out before I call your mother and tell her that you two have been wreaking havoc in the kitchen again. Don't you dare think I've forgotten what you two did with the chocolate cake last month."**_

Chara chuckled nervously, remembering the time when they dragged Asriel into sneaking into the kitchen and eating the insides of the chocolate mud cake meant for the quarterly ball. They had gotten caught by Cook in the act, and got double whammy-ed by a stern lecture and a night full of stomach aches which they considered absolutely worth it, considering the amount of chocolate they got to eat that night. "Of course. We'll leave you be."

" _ **But Chara, our breakfast!"**_

" _ **Oh for crimminy's sake. You'll be getting waffles, alright? You were right the first time! And before you ask: it's blueberry waffle for you Prince Asriel. Your favourite."**_

Asriel peaked out of his hiding with a wide smile. _ **"Really? Ow!"**_

Cook wiped her spoon of Asriel's head fur and pointed it at Chara. _**"And it's chocolate chips for you Princess. Yours is a special case so try not to blurt it out to everyone like an idiot. We don't want your mother finding out now, do we?"**_

Chara's nervous smile turned genuine. "Thank you Cook." They looked back and nudged their brother.

" _ **Hmph. Thank you Cook."**_ He grumbled the words as he rubbed his sore head.

With a haughty snort, Cook returned to her duties, and Chara walked out of the kitchen with Asriel in tow.

The door closed behind them and Chara leaned back on it, their heart beating with energy and liveliness. They looked to their brother by their side and saw him do the same.

He smiled, and they smiled back.

" _ **You wanna go play hide and seek until mum stops us?"**_ He asked, and they stared at him with wide eyes.

"Can we?"

" _ **Of course we can! What's stopping you?"**_

Chara frowned, their mind filled with thoughts of the child, of their fight, of all the horrible things going on in their life. But then they looked at Asriel and the offer he was making, the promises he had and the love he had to share.

Tentatively, they smiled and nodded. "Yes. I would love to."

" _ **Tag! You're it!"**_ Asriel pushed them before running down the hall, giggling all the way.

Chara stared at them in shock. Then, as they realised what had happened, they chased their brother down, yelling, _"Oh you little brat!"_ after him.

* * *

The two of them crashed into the flowerbed in the throne room, panting for air as their game of chase had finally came to an end.

The two had played the game for as long as they could, swapping the role of the chaser and the chased several times, going from one end of the castle to the other, disrupting many servants along the way, always smiling and laughing.

For the first time in a while, Chara felt that they were happy. They had their brother next to them, and all the monsters in the castle treated them with respect, not one of them even thinking about raising their blade against them in an attempt to take their SOUL. Everything was as they should be, as Chara _wanted_ them to be.

They rolled their head to the side and watched their brother mirror their move. They reached out and took his hand in their own and squeezed tight. The boy squeezed back, and it was as though a firework was going off in their heart. They were so happy, their eyes began to tear up.

" _ **Are you feeling better now?"**_ Asriel asked.

"Yes." They answered. "I'm the happiest I've been."

" _ **Good."**_ Asriel sighed. _**"You can't save anyone by being depressed. You need to keep going Chara. When things get bad, you can't just give up. I know you can do it if you try. I believe in you."**_

Chara looked at their brother then, and their smile slowly faded. They sat up, looking down at the flower beneath them with wide eyes. They breathed once, twice, then turned back to look at their brother again.

The boy was sitting up as well, watching them with a wry smile, encouraging, yet with a hint of melancholy, a hint of an apology.

The two stared at each other for a long time.

"What… _are_ you?"

Asriel chuckled, then lay back onto the ground with a shrugged. _**"I don't really know."**_ He said, casually rolling around above the flowers.

"Are you Asriel?"

" _ **No. Not really.**_ _ **I think I'm a version of him that you keep in your mind. I was created by you, inside this dreamscape."**_

"Dreamscape?" Chara repeated with a frown.

" _ **Yeah. This whole place. You**_ _ **figured out that**_ _ **none of this is real**_ _ **, right?**_ _ **And if it isn't real, then it must be a dream**_ _ **!**_ _ **Check this out."**_ As if to emphasise his point, Asriel began floating in the air, as did all the furnitures and flower petals not rooted to the bud.

Chara scrambled back, both fearful and mesmerised by the impossible sight. "Dear Lord…"

" _ **Yeah. Pretty cool right? You can do anything here. You're the Queen of this place, a Goddess. What you say goes."**_

_A dream._ Chara thought, staring at their floating brother, at the throne room around them. Suddenly the weird landscape from before, the abruptly changing of world, and the child's weird intangible body and disappearance was all starting to make sense. _It was all a dream… But… that would mean…_

"Does that mean the child I spoke to earlier; that was all a dream as well?"

Asriel's expression turned apologetic, and he and the furnitures floated back down in place. _ **"Sorry, but no. This is a realm shared between you and Frisk.**_ _ **"**_

"Oh."

" _ **Yeah.**_ _ **You guys share a mental link and can talk to each other in your mind. It would make sense that you guys can share your dream as well, right?"**_

Chara took a moment to process the information, then sighed with a resigned nod, supposing that it did make sense. It was just that for a moment, they had hoped that they would get another chance with the child, maybe get a confirmation that the child wasn't as upset with them as they'd been. But as always, reality was a cruel mistress.

A wishful thinking never came true.

"Why did you bring me here? Why did you show me… all those things?"

" _ **I just wanted to make you feel better.**_ _ **"**_ Asriel came over to them and placed his hands on their shoulders. _ **"**_ _ **You were upset, so I thought maybe I'll show you some familiar faces.**_ _ **Remind you of the good days. You were so sad before, I thought you were just going to let yourself rot and die.**_ _ **"**_

"I wasn't going to- _._ " Chara huffed. "Is that why you're appearing to me as _him?_ To make me feel better?"

" _ **I didn't choose this form, actually. When I manifested, I came in a form that caused you the most happiness to see. I don't think I can change that**_ _ **even if I tried."**_

"'Manifested', bloody hell" Chara spat, disgusted. "Don't use big words with his voice. It fits about as well as a round peg through a square hole."

" _ **Sorry.**_ _ **"**_ He said sheepishly. " _ **Are you upset?"**_ He asked, his smile sympathetic.

Chara was silent for a moment before answering. "No. I can't ever be upset with you, brother. I am simply… _disappointed_."

" _ **Because you thought you were getting another chance with Frisk?"**_

Chara shrugged, and Asriel sighed.

" _ **Look, it's going to get better, okay? I know things look blique now, but the sky is at its darkest before the sunrise! You'll make it through this, you'll see!**_ _ **"**_

Chara scoffed. "It's just like you to use such empty phrases to encourage someone."

" _ **Oh yeah? You think those are empty phrases? Then how's this for a taste: Frisk isn't gone! They're still here in the dreamscape and you can talk to them again if you want!"**_

Chara looked up at him with wide eyes. "What?"

" _ **Ah ha! Now look who's interested. It's you Ms Grumpy-pants."**_

"What the hell are you talking about?" They growled. "The child disappeared on me. I saw it with my eyes."

" _ **Yeah, duh. It's their dreamscape too. They just went somewhere else. You can follow them if you want."**_

Chara gaped and stumbled back, the weight of the information colliding with them like a sack of flour.

"How... do you know these things?" They looked directly into Asriel's red eyes. "If you are truly me, how do you know these facts about the dreamscape? How do you know that the child whom I spoke to earlier is not just a figment of my imagination?"

" _ **Oh my god. Did you seriously just say 'whom'? Who even uses that anymore?"**_

"Just answer the question!"

Asriel laughed before sighing. _**"To be honest,**_ _ **I don't really know**_ _ **myself**_ _ **.**_ _ **It's strange. All of this**_ _ **knowledge**_ _ **is in your memory, I know that for sure, but it's… NOT at the same time. I really don't**_ _ **get**_ _ **it. I mean you must know all of this somewhere in that head of yours, right? Or else I can't be here telling you all of this."**_

Chara turned and walked away a few steps, their brain tripping over itself to process the information.

Memories that were stored in their mind.

Memories that even they, the owner of the said memories, could not remember directly.

It was an odd concept, but certainly not an impossible one. Human brain was an enigmatic organ that had so many mysteries to it that even the current human science, which had successfully created a bomb to wipe out a whole city in a second, could not fully understand.

But where could have all these memories come from?

Memories were information of the past, of one's experience. If the said experience was never made, if the said past never happened, how did these memories ever come to be?

" _Chara where are you?_ _"_ The voice of the child echoed from the past, tearful and needing. And though it shot a sting of pain through their heart, it also set off a lightbulb that shed light inside Chara's head.

The monarch straightened up, their eyes wide. "No…"

" _ **What?"**_ Asriel tilted his head, his eyes twinkling with curiosity.

Chara looked at him, their eyes wide with surprise. They worked their jaw for a moment, their voice lost, their mind still struggling to catch up with the new revelation.

Then, their lips began to spread into a smile.

"The ghost." They said in a whisper.

" _ **The… ghost?"**_

"The Chara that the child travelled with!" Chara said. " _They_ knew of this place. _They_ were the one who's been here before. They were the ones who had experienced all of this in the past. It's their memories… It's all within me. It's all.. still within me."

Asriel frowned, visibly confused. _**"And?"**_

"'And'?" Chara laughed at him as though he had lost his mind. "Don't you see?! The ghost is not lost! They are within me. And _that_ means I can bring them back! I can get my memories back!"

They laughed again, their spirit lifting at the thought, at the _possibilities_.

They could be what they had been when the child had been travelling around the Underground. They could be nice to the child for once. They could be kind, loving, understanding, and in control of their rage: _everything_ the child wanted them to be.

Wanted.

They could be wanted again.

They turned to Asriel to share their joy as they'd always done, but the look on his face caused them to stop.

The boy was smiling, yes, but it was a wry smile than a joyous one. It was as though he... _pitied_ them.

Chara's joy slowly faded at the sight and they frowned, questioning. "Whatever is the matter, brother?"

Asriel shook his head and took their time looking up at the magic light above. _**"Nothing."**_ He finally said. _**"I just… I don't understand."**_

"Don't understand what?" They asked.

" _ **Why you're so happy."**_ He said simply which earned him an incredulous look.

"What do you mean 'why I'm so happy'? How can I _not_ be happy? I have my memories with me still! I can be the Chara that has experienced the last sixty years. I just need to find out how."

" _ **But then what?"**_ Asriel continued. _**"What will happen to you then?"**_

Chara stared, bewildered by his response. "Haven't you been listening?"

" _ **I HAVE been listening. But…"**_ Asriel sighed. _ **"But I think it's YOU who's not really understanding what you're saying."**_

Chara backed up, their joy fading away completely. Now they were just baffled, flabbergast. "What do you mean by that?"

Asriel sighed. _**"What is memory?**_ _ **Have you ever thought about that?**_ _ **"**_

"What on earth are you…? What is there to think about?"

" _ **Memory is such an important part of**_ _ **your**_ _ **life, Chara. They say a person is just a sequence of experiences and memories represented in a single entity**_ _ **.**_ _ **S**_ _ **o, who are you when all of that gets taken away?**_ _ **W**_ _ **ho do you think you are right now**_ _ **w**_ _ **ithout your memories?**_ _ **Hm?**_ _ **"**_

"Well, I…" Chara scowled. "I am Chara, of course."

" _ **Then who will you be with your memories as a ghost?"**_ Asriel asked without pause, and it caught Chara off guard.

"I-"

" _ **Will you be Chara? OR will you be Chara?"**_ Asriel cut them off with an inquisitive raise of brow. _ **"Sounds the same, doesn't it? I bet you'll look the same too. But are they the same? Tell me: Will you be the same person with your memory, Chara?"**_

"I…" Chara trailed off and Asriel sighed.

" _ **No. You won't be the same person. You'll be THEM. And YOU? You'll be gone, Chara. You**_ _ **'ll be dead.**_ _ **"**_

Chara blinked, their mind grinding to a stop. "N… no, that's ridiculous. I'll still be here. I'll just be…"

" _ **Different?"**_ Asriel crossed his arms.

"Better." Chara finished with a glare. "I'll be _better_. I'll know how to treat the child. I'll be nicer, kinder, unlike how I am now."

" _ **So, you won't be you then. You will be someone else."**_

"What do you want me to say?" Chara growled, crossing their arms as well.

" _ **I**_ _ **don't want you to say anything**_ _ **.**_ _ **I just wanted to know why you're so incessant on killing yourself."**_

Chara's face paled at the accusation. "I'm _not_ trying to kill myself!"

" _ **But you are, aren't you?"**_ Asriel gave them a hard stare. _ **"If they come back, you will be gone. You, the angry and violent Chara. The one who was alive all those years ago and was learning how to live your life again, that Chara will be gone. Gone from exist**_ _ **e**_ _ **nce, unable to be reached by anyone else, ever again. That's as good as dead."**_

"Well good riddance then." Chara hissed, turning around. "I wasn't even supposed to be here. Whatever the child did to bring me back, it screwed up, and… And…" They turned their head to the side, their throat tightening. "I-I'm the byproduct. A _mistake_. I shouldn't have existed in the first place."

Asriel was quiet, then. They could feel his gaze on them, watching, studying, but he didn't speak. Silence hung between them like a wall.

" _ **Can I ask you another question?"**_

Chara scowled. "You are chatty for someone who claims to be part of my mind."

" _ **Like you're not chatty when you're in the mood."**_

"And you are certainly snide for someone who's took on the form of my brother. Asriel would never act so callous to others."

" _ **Why do you want to please them so much?"**_

Chara paused at the sudden question. "I beg your pardon?"

" _ **Frisk. Why do you want to please them so much?"**_ Asriel repeated, loud and clear. He had his arms crossed with a stern look on his face. _**"You don't even know them that well. Hell, you were fine with torturing them just a few days ago. You're the one who wanted to push them away. So why now, when you've finally gotten what you wanted, do you suddenly want to please them so much?"**_

"I…" Chara's answer escaped them.

" _ **Do you love them?"**_

" _Love_?" They gawked.

" _ **Do you think you're friends?"**_ Asriel continued, unabashed.

_Yes,_ they wanted to say but it didn't feel right to say that. "Well, I mean, 'friend' is such a strong word…"

" _ **Then why?"**_

Chara stammered for an answer before they grit their teeth and shook their head. "Can't I just be a decent person for once? A child has been kidnapped!"

" _ **Then get help.**_ _ **"**_ Asriel said coldly. _ **"**_ _ **Get Papyrus to solve the**_ _ **issue**_ _ **. Get mum to do it. Helping an old lady cross the street is being a decent person. Going around threatening others; giving up your entire existence for someone else's happiness; that's way more. And I don't get why you're so insistent."**_ Asriel bit his lips. _**"This… this is about Leslie, isn't it?"**_

Chara's breath hitched, their gut tensing as someone had just knocked the wind out of them.

"What?" They gasped, their eyes wide.

" _ **Leslie. This is about her. This is all about what happened before. That's what it is."**_

Chara stumbled back, blood roaring against their ears as their whole body began to tingle with numbness. "Don't. Please, don't."

" _ **Leslie's dead Chara."**_ Asriel said, and Chara felt like someone had punched a hole in their chest. _ **"So is Michael. So is David, Sarah, Lilien, Amanda-"**_

"Stop it!" Chara barked, grabbing for their chest as each name continued to pierce their heart over and over. But their brother wasn't done.

" _ **Sam. Monty. Barbara. Michael. Baby Michel. All of the 'little ones'? They're gone. They're**_ _ **DEAD**_ _ **. And what you're doing here isn't going to bring them back."**_

Chara breathed in, and out. In. And out.

Tears blurred their vision, sound of small giggles, distant yet so real as though they would find the source if they just turned around tickled their ears. They pressed their eyes shut, bit down on their lips and concentrated on breathing. Just breathing.

"No." They said, breathing in and out one last time. "No, but this _will_ set things right. One child. That's all I have to save. Just one child, and it would be worth it. I wouldn't have failed them, don't you see?"

" _ **Then maybe you should just give up on Frisk."**_

Chara gaped, appalled, but Asriel kept himself firm.

" _ **If THAT is all that's driving you to save Frisk, then you should just give up already. Frisk isn't a ticket for you to release you of your guilt. They deserve so much more than that."**_

"But…" Chara shook their head. "What am I supposed to do, then?"

" _ **Frisk needs love. They need care. All of which are genuine. You want to save them? Give them that. Give them that yourself. Don't run away by turning into a different person. Don't run away by getting rid of yourself. Otherwise, this thing will hang between the two of you forever. YOU have to be the one to show them that you are sorry, that you care for them no matter what. That way, both of you will be able to let go of this."**_

Chara opened their mouth, then closed it when no words came. They bit their lips, clenched their fists, and glared at the ground before them. Then, slowly, their eyes became misty with tears, and soon there were droplets dripping down their cheeks one by one.

"I…" They sobbed, their voice just above a whisper. "But I don't know how, brother. I don't know how to love like that. I can't. I'm not capable."

They sniffled and they tried their best to stave off the tears as much as they could. They didn't want to cry. Crying wasn't going to solve anything. They wanted to be better than that. They _had_ to be better than that.

But at that moment, a pair of soft arms pulled them forward, and wrapped around them in a tight embrace.

Asriel coaxed them to bury their face into the crook of his neck, and he rubbed his furry cheek against their own, and patted them over their head. _**"That's not true."**_ He said, softly, gently like their mother, strong just like their father. _ **"You love ME, right? You love mum? You love dad? I think you're perfectly capable. I know you are. Because otherwise, I wouldn't be holding you like this in your dream. I love you, sister. I believe in you."**_

Chara was stunned.

The feeling of Asriel holding them was so familiar and nostalgic that, for a moment, they forgot everything else in the world: The fight. The fear. The anger. Everything broke down before the love their brother was showing them.

Then, a second later, it all came crashing back down.

Everything.

All the pain.

All the sorrows and hardship.

It came down at them all at once, and it shattered the barrier Chara kept around their heart. It broke through and stabbed mercilessly at their soul, and Chara just couldn't take it anymore.

They wrapped desperate arms around their brother, and burst into tears.

"Asriel." They sobbed. "Oh Asriel. Oh brother, help me! I don't know what to do. I don't know what anything is anymore! The world has turned so strange. Mother and Father have separated. Our people are all turning against me. Everyone else we knew are gone. The voices are telling me awful things again. And the child… I've hurt them so much, I don't know how to fix it. I don't know what to _do!_ I'm so lost. I don't know how to set things right. Help me, brother. Help me! _Help m_ _e!_ "

The tears kept on coming. Chara clung to Asriel with all they had, sobbing and wailing so hard their face turned red as their eyes. They bawled on and on, screaming, trembling. And through it all, Asriel held them, cooing words of comfort into their ear over and over. _**"Shh,"**_ He hushed. _ **"It's alright. It's going to be okay. I believe in you. Everything's gonna be fine."**_

They didn't know how long they cried for. Time seemed to fly by irregularly in this strange world. But they knew for sure: no matter how much they cried, their didn't leave them. He held them tight, and endured a part of their pain with them, all on his own accord.

When the tears finally subsided and Chara felt composed enough to look up again, they realised that they were no longer sitting in the throne room, but outside at the large flower field again, under the yellow sky where pink clouds floated by; exactly where they had met and separated with the child earlier.

Asriel pushed them back, and brushed his furry finger over their tear stained cheek. He smiled. _**"Look at you. Who's the crybaby now?"**_

Chara sniffled, wiping their dripping eyes and nose. "You are, of course. One occasion does not trump over dozens."

" _ **You feeling better?"**_ Asriel laughed.

"I… think I am." They said.

They _did_ feel better somewhat, but the tears had not solved anything, just as they had feared. They were in the same position as before. They were just as lost.

"Brother. What should I do? I've been so lost, I don't know where to even begin."

" _ **Well, you're the smart one of us two. I'm sure you can come up with something."**_

"But I can't. I act like a highborn, a genius, but I'm just a kid, just like you and the little ones. I thought that if I could talk to the child I can get them to reset time or perhaps ask them where they are in the real world so that I may find it, but they… they don't want to talk to me. They want nothing to do with me. I'm hated, just as I should be."

" _ **Gee. You're such a sourpuss."**_ Asriel chuckled. _**"Tell me. What were you trying to do before you met Frisk here?"**_

Chara frowned. "I was trying to rescue them of course."

" _ **And have you done that?"**_

"Well, no, not yet."

" _ **Then why don't you?"**_

"Why don't I? Haven't you been listening? The child hates me!"

" _ **Yeah? So you're just NOT going to rescue Frisk now because you know**_ _ **they hate you?"**_

"I…" Chara paused. "No… No, of course not. The child is still kidnapped, and they still need my help."

" _ **Then you should do that, right?"**_

Chara lowered their gaze and bit their lips. "I… I'm not sure if I can."

" _ **Geez.**_ _ **Come on."**_ Asriel said, standing up.

Chara looked up at him with. "Where are we going?"

Asriel took their hand and dragged them up to a stand. _**"We're going to find Frisk."**_

"How?" Chara followed. "Do you know where they are?"

" _ **Yeah. Behind you."**_

Chara spun around immediately, their shock evident.

The world had changed again, but not as completely as before. They were still in the flower field with the pink clouds. But in the distance, there stood a large… pyramid of some sort, made from what appeared to be a mountain pile of rock candy with shining wrappings. Large pink ice cream looking blocks in the center of the pyramid composed a staircase to the top. And at the said top, there was a platform, guarded by a menacing row of jagged tree that made a large cage. And inside this cage, on the flat platform, there sat a figure. A small, familiar figure in blue and purple.

Chara turned back. "Is that…?"

" _ **Yeah."**_ Asriel said. _**"Are you ready?"**_

"For what?"

" _ **To talk to them."**_

"Talk?" Chara gulped. "W-wait. This is all happening too fast. I need to slow down."

" _ **Chara."**_ Asriel sighed.

"Well what did you expect?!" They hissed before hyperventilating. "What the hell would I even say to them?"

Asriel rolled his eyes. _**"Just stick to business. You want to rescue them right?**_ _ **Tell them what's happening in the real world and ask them if they have any information that could help with you finding them**_ _ **. Even**_ **I** _ **know that**_ _ **'s what you should do.**_ _ **Oh, but don't bother asking about the resets. They can't use their time power in their dream."**_

" _What_?! You're telling me this _now?!"_

" _ **You didn't need to know until now.**_ _ **"**_ Asriel shrugged. _ **"**_ _ **That, and you were too busy being a cry**_ _ **baby**_ _ **for me to tell you."**_

"I _hate_ you."

" _ **A**_ _ **w,**_ _ **I**_ _ **h**_ _ **ate you too, Chara."**_

Chara ignored their brother's snickers and turned to face the pyramid again, studying its structure and taking in the daunting task that awaited them at the top. They inhaled deeply, then sighed. "Okay. Let's… get this over with."

" _ **Great! Good luck!"**_

Chara turned again in surprise. "What? You're not coming along?"

Asriel shrugged. _**"It's a private conversation, right? I shouldn't intrude. I mean I'm not even real."**_

"But… I _need_ you."

" _ **Gee, talk about clingy. Here, give me your SOUL."**_

"I beg your p-OW!"

Asriel snickered to himself, holding the bright red SOUL that he'd forcibly ripped out of Chara's chest. _**"Baby."**_ He said, then continued by pluck a fragment out of the SOUL, one that was barely the size of a fingernail. He studied the piece, nodded with satisfaction and pushed the remaining SOUL back where it belonged.

After the SOUL was absorbed, Chara grumbled, rubbing their hand over their chest. "The real Asriel would never have done something so rude."

" _ **Yeah, I know. But then where would you be without someone to push you along like this?"**_ Asriel hummed and gripped the SOUL piece in his hand. _**That should do.**_ He said, and Chara blinked as they realised his words had echoed in their mind instead of their ears. _**Now I can give you moral support without actually being there.**_

"Oh." Chara said. "That's rather quaint."

" _ **Yeah! So off you go now! Good luck!"**_

Asriel gave them a gentle shove on the back and suddenly, Chara was standing at the base of the pyramid, one foot already set on the ice cream block staircase.

They looked back in surprise and saw a forest in the distance where a small white figure was waving at them from behind one of the trees. They grumbled, their cheeks red, thinking of all the ways they were going to get back at their brother for this later.

_You're not gonna get back at them. He's not real._

_That_ particular thought came out of the blue, and it sombered them up quite quickly.

They hadn't forgotten the fact that this 'Asriel' wasn't real, but it did leave the question of whether they would ever see him again, in any of their future dreams. If they weren't, perhaps this was the last chance for them to say goodbye, and they were missing it.

_**Forget about me. Focus on what's ahead.**_ Asriel's voice came.

"Brother, I-"

_**I'll always be here, okay? Don't worry about it. Don't dwell on the dead. Focus on the living.**_ There was a pause. _**I love you, sister, from here to eternity. Always remember that.**_

Chara's throat tightened, their vision blurred with unshed tears, but they swallowed, wiped their eyes and nodded. They had a business to attend to.

The climb up the stairs were both surprisingly easy and difficult at the same time.

The stairs, despite its seemingly daunting length and size, was a breeze to walk up. Because as it turned out, dreamscape stamina was infinite, and no matter how far they went, Chara's legs didn't tire at all, always as refreshed as they had been on the first step. It was a pleasant surprise for the monarch, though definitely not a lasting one.

Now with their physical trial of walking up the stairs gone, their trial was solely focused on the mental one. And the constant dread of meeting the child again, of what the child would say to them when they finally met and spoke, made them wish they actually _could_ feel the physical exertion just to distract their mind.

What could they say to the child, really? They wished they could say something profound, something that could portray their desire for friendship without a shadow of a doubt. They could explain how they'd met Papyrus and grown a kinship with him despite their rocky start, and they could do the same for their meeting Lesser Dog. It would certainly please the child. But as Chara imagined the conversation, they couldn't shake the feeling that they were laying out evidence for a trial. It was calculated, logical, and not something the child would be very impressed by. They needed something genuine, just as Asriel had said. The child would accept nothing less.

_Genuinity_. Chara thought with spite. _I can't believe after all these years I'm trying to be_ genuine _of all things._

Genuinity was the bane of their existence. For the large part of their life Chara had survived on lies: faking pleasure, faking joy, faking happiness and contentment that they were expected to show for others. They hid things too: They hid their affections for others, lest the ones they cared for got hurt; they hid their pain, hid their sorrow and despair, to steel themselves against the relentless assault that life had thrown at them. Genuinity made one weaker, and weakness got one killed. What irony it was then, that _now_ they were expected to be genuine. It made them feel like they were walking towards the gallows, a thick noose waiting for their neck. They guessed the noose would have to be lowered to match their height compared to all the adults, and it would have to be shrunk so that it could be fitted around their neck more naturally. A noose for a child. What a funny thought. It was almost funny enough to make Chara forget the fact that they were now halfway up the stairs, and halfway towards facing the music.

_**Uh oh.**_ Asriel's voice cut through their jittering mind.

"What?" They asked, secretly relieved for the opportunity to think about something else other than the child.

_**You have to hurry up. You have to talk to Frisk NOW.** _

Perhaps they spoke too soon. "What do you mean?"

_**Look at your hand.** _

Chara did, and they gasped when they saw that they could see the ground through their palm.

Their entire hand was blurring in and out of existence, though there was no pain accompanying it. "What is this?"

_**You're waking up. Nothing troubling, but if you don't speak to Frisk now, you might not get the chance to next time.** _

Chara's heart jumped at the thought. "B-but wait, can't I just come back here by falling asleep again?"

_**It's not certain. You came here by accident this time, and Frisk may have blocked your mind from coming back here again.** _

"Shit."

_**Swear jar.** _

"Oh shut the hell up."

Chara did not wait for their mind to comprehend and calculate their situation. They went with their instincts and began running up the stairs, taking two case at a time. They reached the top in no time, and it was only then, when their eyes landed on the child sitting in the middle of the cage, that they stopped to start freaking out about what they were about to do.

The child had their back turned to them inside their little cage, surrounded by toys, sweets, books and crayons, and if they had noticed Chara's presence, they did not show. The cage wasn't really much of a prison, but a protection from the outside, each tree jutting menacing spikes outward to keep any threat out and away. Try as they might, Chara could not help but think that the thorns were somehow specifically aimed at them.

They stepped forward, wincing when their shoe clopped loudly against the ground. There was no way that Frisk didn't hear, but the child remained stiff as a board, sitting in their little pen, their legs hugged close to their chest. Chara approached until they were touching the edge of the spikes, and searched for a way further inside to no avail. This was as close to the child as they could get.

This was it then.

This was the moment.

They _had_ to talk.

It was now or nothing.

"Child?" They finally got the courage to call out. Their heart was pounding in their chest, their head spinning with vertigo. "Child, can you hear me?"

Frisk did not budge, and Chara didn't know if they were ignoring them or if the cage acted as a sound barrier as well.

"Child, listen to me. I don't have much time. If I am correct, I am to wake soon. Please, tell me you can hear me."

Frisk didn't speak, but they did shift in place, turning further away from Chara. It wasn't the type of response the monarch was looking for, but the rejection itself meant that Frisk could indeed hear their words, and for now that was far more important than forgiveness or acceptance.

"Okay, you don't want to talk. That's fine. Just listen then: I don't know how much you know of what's happening in the outside world but I need to know you've been kidnapped. You've been kidnapped and are being held in stasis so you won't wake up on your own. I know that doesn't make much sense, but I don't have time to explain. Just please, if you know anything about your body's whereabouts, please tell me. I need to know."

Something cracked, a thin sheet of ice breaking under strain. Chara looked down and found a large, angry crack running down their arm. As they raised it to get a better look, their arm crumbled inwards, disappearing into nothing as though their body was a hollow shell. They didn't spare the time to gawk at the horrible sight. _Time_ was of the essence, and it was running out fast.

But even still, Frisk didn't answer. They didn't even look when the crack showed. They had heard everything Chara had said, and they didn't care.

"Child."

There was no answer.

"Child. Please!"

No answer. No reaction.

Before Chara could speak again, they stumbled. They tried to gain balance but strangely, their leg didn't seem to have any strength.

They looked down again at the sound of a loud ' _clink!',_ clutching onto one of the thorns as support. Another line had appeared, this time on their leg… or at least what was left of it.

Half way down their right thigh, their leg had cut off into a jagged edge. What had been their right leg had fallen to the ground, shattered to pieces, crumbled like a charred log.

The sight sent a chill down their spine and Chara wondered if waking up from this dreamscape was always so abrupt and morbid.

They turned their gaze to the child again, thinking that such horrid sight would no doubt draw their attention. But even still, the child made no move to look, didn't even tense at the sound. Perhaps they'd seen this before, so many times that it no longer amused them, and no matter how disturbing it was for the monarch, they still had no reason to look. It sparked a moment of irritation for Chara, but it was quickly hushed by sensibility. They weren't going to be mad. They were going to be better. For the child and for themselves.

"Very well." They said. "I understand. You will not help me. Perhaps you don't want to be rescued. There is nothing I can do to change tha-"

A crack. A jolt of pain. They gasped and fell on their one knee which quickly crumbled away at the shift in weight. Now a torso and an arm, they groaned and leaned onto a thorn.

"I… I'm not _them._ " They spoke between their teeth, their pounding head making it difficult to concentrate. "I know I'm not them. You know it too. We both know that I am nothing like the Chara you wish to have, not as I am now, and perhaps I will never be. But that doesn't mean that we can give up!

I know you don't want to see me. I know you don't trust me. But that's okay, because I don't need any of that. I just wish to do right by you. I want to be your _friend._ And I'm going to prove that by rescuing you from your kidnappers. You and I both know that I don't need to, because the moment you die, you will simply reset time, and all of my effort will become null. But that's not the point. I'm going to do it because I know you deserve it, and because I want to repay you the kindness that you've shown me. I won't ask you for a second chance, child. I will earn it. I promise you that. I promise you _-"_

Another crack. Something seemed to shatter, and suddenly Chara felt their grip on the thorn disappear. They fell, their limbless body hitting the cold ground.

They gasped. They tried to speak again, but their world was spinning. They could hardly form a sentence with the way their head pounded with the might of a hammer against an anvil. But what they knew for sure: The child still hadn't come for them.

They were still alone, and might as well have been speaking to the air. They felt tears forming in their eyes. They knew that they didn't deserve it, but they wished they got an acknowledgement from the child. Something that said that the child listened and took their word into consideration, be it for acceptance or rejection. They didn't care. They just wanted the child to hear them. They just wanted the child to look at them once more.

"Child.." They managed to say, but as they rolled their head to look, the child didn't budge from their place.

" _Child_." They said again, but the result was the same. It wasn't enough.

No word was enough.

They wished they could say so many things to the child, knowing that this might be the last time that the two of spoke to each other for quite some time.

And so they searched for a word. One word that came to the forefront of their mind when they thought of the child. One word that was so simple, yet was so important to them both. One word that summarised all that they were trying to say. One word that showed that they truly cared.

" _Frisk._ "

There was crack, but it wasn't from their own body this time.

The thorned tree around them parted, widening the gap which they could see the child. And when they peered inside, they came face to face with Frisk who had not only finally turned to look at them, but was also now standing on the other side of the wooden cage. Their cheeks were stained with tears, their glistening eyes looking down at Chara in wonder.

"What did you call me?" They asked, their voice hoarse, and Chara for once, smiled.

" _Frisk._ " They said again, and the child gasped.

"Chara…"

"I-I'll come for you, Frisk. Wait for me." They begged, using all of their remaining strength to form their words.

The child seemed speechless. They almost seemed like they were about to run away again. But then they swallowed, looked Chara straight in the eyes, and nodded.

And just like that, all the pain that Chara had been suffering up until that point, suddenly eased, and the monarch looked up at the child with a serene smile.

"I'll see you soon."

And in less than a second, their body crumbled into dust, and they were gone the dream world without a trace.

* * *

From afar, Asriel watched with a passive smile. Frisk had a forlorn look on their face as they continued to stare at where Chara had been not a moment ago. He took a step back and hid behind a tree, making sure that Frisk still hadn't noticed his presence.

Slowly, he raised his paw, and stared at the small piece of SOUL that was hovering within his palm. It squirmed in the air, an animal bound inside a cage. He crushed his palm over it, and soon the red glow that seeped through his fingers faded into his body.

He grinned.

_**"Stupid whore."**_ He said, but it wasn't his voice anymore.

The white fur shed away, the floppy ears and long snout burning off.

All that was left the same in the end, were a pair of blood red eyes.

And in a flash, the new figure disappeared into a bright, cherry red flames.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Aaaand blamo! End chapter! Mysterious ending! All the time! Never gets old!**
> 
> **In all seriousness, thank you so much to you all for reading this story and a special thank you to any and all returning readers. I'm so sorry for everything and I hope that this chapter was entertaining and not confusing in any way (or at least not TOO confusing).**
> 
> **Please do tell me if you think it is, or if you have any feelings on the chapter in general. It always helps me to hear your opinions :D**
> 
> **Personally speaking, this is probably the 6th version I wrote for this chapter? And really I think it's ridden with OOCness, a weird pacing issue and some logic leaps, and unfortunately I really didn't think it was getting any better as I rewrote it, over and over and over. BUT fortunately this version WAS the one that did the best job setting stuff up for the future chapters so... yeah, that's MY opinion if you wanted to know and- Blimey I'm rambling again.**
> 
> **What I'm trying to say is: I'm interested in seeing if my view of the chapter will differ from yours. It'll be fun!**
> 
> **Now the good news I have for this story is that I've already written up the next two chapters and believe I only need to tweak things slightly to get them 'publish ready'. Maybe I can keep my focus on the future chapters so that I can write more ahead and keep my release cycle more regular, hm? One can hope.**
> 
> **Anyway, that's enough of me! Hopefully I can get back to you guys in... say, a few weeks maybe. So until then: Ciao!**
> 
> **Ideas abandoned for this chapter: Charisk singing duet. Chara's abusive past flashback. Friendly Frisk. Teletubbies sun baby Frisk. Cactus Frisk. And Pinkie Pie.**
> 
> **Up next: Chara wakes up.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Hello! A bit later than I hoped, but I'm back with a new chapter.**
> 
> **Thank you all so so much for all the support with the previous chapter. Every comment, and message was so terrifying, yet wonderful to read. I was honestly very moved. Thank you so much.**
> 
> **This chapter was supposed to be longer, but I wanted to try releasing smaller chapters for once. It's a lot easier to edit this way, I'll tell you that. I mean, you'd think it would be obvious, but I never realised just how _much_ easier it was to do it. I just hope I've added enough content to keep it entertaining. I'm still a bit wordy with my scenes I'm afraid :P**
> 
> **Anyways! I'll let you guys be the judge. On with the show!**

* * *

Chara gasped awake, their eyes flicking open as their consciousness snapped back into reality like a rubber band. They leapt up, throwing the thin sheet blanket draped over them away in the process. Then, as quickly as they'd gotten up, they fell back down, hissing loudly as their entire body thrummed with needle like pain. They gasped for breath, taking the time to relax their taut muscles as they stared at the dark, rocky ceiling above.

They were in a cave. A small, damp cave made of blue rocks so dark that it was almost black. The air was cold, but there seemed to be a fire nearby that was warming them up from one side. They could see the orange glow on the stones above, feel the heat on their arm. They felt the soft fabric over their stomach and legs as well. Their body was full of sensation, whole once more. They were back. Back here, in the realworld.

What an odd concept that was now: the _real_ world. As the post-sleep lethargy settled upon them like a fuzzy cloud, Chara had to wonder if what they had seen was all a figment of their imagination, a dream conjured up by their desperate need to see the child once more. They had spoken with Frisk, with _Asriel_ even. If this had been any other day, they would have scoffed at themselves and fell back asleep, maybe even scold themselves for being so soft. But now...

_Child._ They called out. _Frisk? Can you hear me?_

There was nothing in their head. Nothing but the dead silence that had been there ever since the kidnapping. Their mind was so empty. So alone. They should have expected that. They _were_ expecting it in fact. But even still, disappointment pressed down on them like a deadweight, pushing them to the ground and rubbing their face against the dirt.

Of course,they thought. Of course no one would answer, because really, how ludicrous could they get? A _dreamscape?_ One where they were mentally linked with the child to share their experience? It was foolish. Beyond foolish. Too much hope and wishful thinking was rotting their common sense.

They stared at the ceiling above and found their vision blurred with frustrated tears.

_Stupid._ The voices spat. _Stupid fucking whore._

"Fuck off." They growled back, their fists clenching, arms moving to wipe their eyes. " _Fuck. Off."_

They were so tired of this; tired of the voices jabbing at their soul; tired of the disappointment and the crippling weight of failure plaguing their every living moment.

But what they were tired of the most, was themselves lying on their back and mulling in their sorrows, not only having the world beat them to submission, but letting it as well.

Well, no more.

Enough was enough. They weren't going to give up.

It didn't matter if it wasn't real.

It didn't matter if they were alone and whatever talk they had with the child never even happened.

They made a promise. And whether that promise had been to the child or to themselves, it didn't matter. They were going to follow through.

Chara's eyes brightened, agleam with resolve.

Slowly, they got up again.

* * *

#  **Chapter 14**

Chara sauntered out of the cave, the orange scarf that had acted as their makeshift blanket protecting them from the coldness outside. The scarf belonged to Papyrus, and they noted that their body was wrapped in bandages and ointment as well. The skeleton had taken good care of them while they were out, but now he was nowhere to be seen. Given their situation with the Royal guards, Chara couldn't help but worry for his safety.

The cave they took shelter in was at the bottom of a large cliffside, a snowy plain spreading just outside its mouth. One side of this plain lead back into the dense maze that was the Snowdin forest, while the other side lead off to a cliff of its own. Making sure there wasn't anyone about, Chara discreetly made their way to the edge and peered over. The ground below seemed at least ten storeys down, a flat vertical fall.

_A very poor escape path._ They thought. It appeared that the only viable method of escape from here was into the forest, which was also where any danger can come _from_. If the guards happen to find them here, they were going to have to fight their way out, a suicide if they've ever seen one. They were going to have to leave this place as soon as possible.

"NYAH HA! YOU'RE AWAKE!"

Chara flinched, spinning around with their hand clutching onto the scarf. Then, they breathed a sigh of relief when they saw a tall skeleton jogging towards them from the forest. "Papyrus. Thank goodness, you're alright."

"OF COURSE I'M ALRIGHT!" The skeleton said proudly. "I'M THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE ASKING _YOU_ THAT. _YOU'RE_ THE ONE WHO'S BEEN BEDRIDDEN FOR THE LAST FIVE HOURS! HOW ARE YOU FEELING?"

_Five hours?_ Chara frowned. That was far longer than what they had experienced in the dreamscape. But then again, who knew what sort of time rules the dreamscape abided by?"Rather well, I think." They answered, rubbing a hand over their eyes. "Far better than how I was before, anyhow."

"NOT GONNA FAINT ANYMORE?"

"No, I should certainly hope not. I was more worried for _your_ health actually."

Papyrus laughed at that. "WELL, THAT'S SILLY! WHY WOULD YOU WORRY ABOUT THAT?"

"Given how you were running from a pack of dogs while carrying a deadweight? I was afraid we wouldn't make it. I admit I half expected myself to wake up in a prison cell."

"OOH, YOU UNDERESTIMATE ME, LITTLE HUMAN! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE MADE A PROMISE TO HELP YOU, AND I HAVE NEVER FAILED TO KEEP A PROMISE IN MY LIFE!"

"Have you now?" Chara gave an amused grin. "I _do_ suppose that my fear _is_ unfounded. Perhaps I _have_ underestimated you." They chuckled playfully, making the skeleton do the same. "How are you, sir? I worried for you when I couldn't find you in the cave. What were you doing just now?"

"I'M DOING GREAT! I WAS JUST PATROLLING THE AREA AND MAKING SURE NO ONE WAS COMING THIS WAY OR FOLLOWED US HERE."

"Ah, good man. Any signs of the dogs then?"

"NOPE! THOSE GUYS HAVEN'T EVEN COME CLOSE TO FINDING US SO FAR! I MADE SURE TO HIDE US IN A PLACE THAT'S AWAY FROM THEIR USUAL PATROL ROUTES YOU SEE! IT'LL TAKE THEM A WHILE TO FIND US."

"I see." Chara sighed in relief before glancing back at the cliff. They frowned, nibbled on their lips then turning back to the skeleton with a decision. "Alright then. Let us move out. We've overstayed our welcome."

Papyrus blinked in surprise. "ERR, WHAT? NOW? BUT YOU JUST WOKE UP!"

"Indeed, but I'm afraid our pursuers care little of such facts. The longer we stay, the more chances of us being found. Come, we leave in five." Without waiting, Chara walked around the skeleton and began sauntering back to the cave. Papyrus, his skull face gaping in shock, quickly followed suit.

"H-HEY, WAIT! WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? YOU CAN BARELY WALK! YOU NEED TO REST MORE!" Papyrus insisted but Chara wasn't fazed.

"What I _need_ , dear Papyrus,is not to get caught. Now let's go."

"NO NO NO! WAIT A MINUTE!" The skeleton jumped in front of them, blocking their path.

Chara stopped and crossed their arms, unimpressed. "I'm afraid this is not up for debate. We stay here any longer and we risk getting caught."

"WE CAN AFFORD TO STAY ANOTHER HOUR." Papyrus suggested. "YOU LEAVE RIGHT NOW AND YOU'LL FALL OVER FROM YOUR INJURIES! YOU _NEED_ TO _REST_."

"I've rested enough. Another hour isn't going to change that."

"DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER OF POWER NAPS! AND WE CAN'T JUST WALK AWAY WHENEVER WE WANT. WE'LL RUN INTO TROUBLE!"

"We're fugitives, Papyrus. I think we're _already_ introuble."

"THAT DOESN'T MEAN WE CAN'T FALL INTO BIGGER TROUBLE! WE NEED PLANS! STRATEGIES!"

"That's…" Chara opened their mouth but their retort quickly died in their throat. "A plan. Right. Yes, that... _would_ be good." They cleared their throat, cheeks flushing an embarrassed red. "B-but we still can't stay here. We've already done so for far too long."

"WE'LL DO IT AS QUICK AS WE CAN! IT'LL ONLY TAKE AN HOUR!"

"An hour is much too long."

"LESS THAN AN HOUR THEN!" Papyrus said, persistent. "LOOK AT YOURSELF. YOU WON'T LAST AN HOUR OUTSIDE RIGHT NOW. YOU NEED TO RECOVER OR ELSE YOU WON'T GET ANYTHING DONE!"

Chara dropped their gaze to the ground, biting their lips. They very much wished to ignore him and get a move on. Being pursued, especially through the woods, was one of the things that made them beyond anxious. Too many bad memories strung along with it: memories of distant gunshots, screams, and grubby hands beating them to submission.

But he _did_ have a very good point: They had no proper plan. Getting one of the canines to help them in their search for the child had been their original goal, and now that _that_ plan was out of the picture, they had no idea what else to do, where to go. If they were to leave now, they would most likely end up roaming the forest blindly until they collapsed from their injuries or be found by one of the patrolling guards.

_It's alright. He just wants to help._ They told themselves, taking in slow, steady breaths. _And a plan is a must have regardless of how much rest I get. Listen to him. He speaks sense._

They let out a resigned sigh. They weren't happy about it, but they would endure their discomfort if it meant that they would be more efficient in finding the child.

Anything to find the child.

"Very well then." They huffed finally, and Papyrus visibly relaxed. "I'll rest up a few more minutes while we get our plan sorted out. But once we know what to do, I will not be waiting a second longer. Is that understood?"

"CRYSTAL!" The skeleton saluted, then grinned widely in joy. "COME ON THEN! LET'S GO BACK INTO THE CAVE!"

Chara followed, but only for another two steps. They stopped, their harsh gaze boring into the ground before their feet. In a moment's decision, they looked up. "Papyrus, wait!"

He stopped, turning around with a quizzical look even as his feet kept running in place. "YES? NEED SOMETHING?"

"I…" Chara trailed off, sudden nerve shrinking their voice to a naught. "I… well, you see, I was just..."

"YEAH? WHAT IS IT?" Papyrus coaxed.

Chara clenched their teeth, theirs hands squeezing and twisting at the hem of their oversized scarf. Then, they took in a deep breath, pushing down their pride and began speaking what they believed was needed to be said. "I just wanted to say… Thank you."

The running finally stopped. "UHH, WHAT FOR?"

"You know what for." Chara huffed, "I know I've said it before, but I thought it appropriate, given how you've helped me yet again despite knowing what I am. You saved my life, patched me up and now you're tolerating my rudeness even though you have no reason to. So… yes. You have my thanks. It's the least you deserve."

Chara turned their gaze to the side, staring down at the forest beyond the cliff as their ears tipped a burning red.

The silence from the skeleton made them feel silly and awkward. Had they chosen a bad time to say it? They simply wanted him to know how grateful they were, but perhaps they should have waited until they were back in the cave, or perhaps when they were back in the castle with their father by their side.

_Brilliant work, you moron._ They scolded themselves. _Now you've made him uncomfortable._

Chara sucked in a breath, a hasty apology just on the tip of their tongue when a boney hand suddenly fell on their shoulder.

They looked up, and saw Papyrus giving them a warm, comforting smile.

"HEY NOW. NO NEED FOR ANY THANKS." He said, "I TOLD YOU, I'M JUST DOING MY JOB. ROYAL GUARDS ARE THE CHAMPION OF THE PEOPLE. I'LL ALWAYS COME TO HELP THOSE IN NEED."

Chara didn't know what say. They suddenly felt so silly for how they were acting. "Yes." They whispered quietly, their voice hoarse. "Yes, of course."

"WELL, COME ON!" Papyrus slapped them over the back. "LET'S GET YOU OUT OF THIS COLD! I'LL MAKE YOU SOMETHING TO EAT! THEN, WE CAN START OUR PLANNING!"

With a small nod, Chara walked, guided by the skeleton's hand on their back. Despite the cold wind blowing around them, the scarf around their neck kept them warm and made them forget all about their worries.

* * *

" _What_ the _bloody_ hell is this?"

Inside the cave, Chara sat on a log by a fire, staring in horror at the paper plate offered by a smiling Papyrus.

"IT'S SPAGHETTI!" The skeleton answered.

"But… It's _purple._ "

To his credit, the food _did_ appear spaghetti in shape, but it didn't change the fact that the noodle -as well as the napolitana sauce on top- was dyed in a deep, fruity purple.

"Um, when did you make this exactly?"

"ABOUT HALF AN HOUR AGO! A PERFECT TIMING! IT'S COOLED JUST ENOUGH TO EAT NOW, SO HERE YOU GO!"

Chara could not feel even a hint of heat coming from the dish. The purple blob was ice cold. "Um, would it be too much to ask for a can of the grape soda again?" They tried with a waning smile.

It was then that Papyrus began laughing deviously. "NYEH HEH HEH! I _THOUGHT_ YOU MIGHT ASK THAT. AND THAT'S WHY I MADE YOU THIS VERY SPECIAL SPAGHETTI, MY LITTLE HUMAN!"

Chara frowned, a sudden weight pressing down on their gut. "How do you mean, 'special'?"

"WELL, I DON'T USUALLY BRAG, BUT WHILE I WAS WONDERING WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE FOR DINNER, I HAD A CULINARY BREAKTHROUGH! I THOUGHT, ' _CHARA LIKES SODA, AND THEY LIKE SPAGHETTI! WHY DON'T I MIX THEM TOGETHER?!'_ IT'S INGENIUS IF I SAY SO MYSELF."

Chara looked at the plate again, seeing the purple pasta with newfound, horrifying light. "I… see..."

"YEAH! GO ON, TAKE IT! I USED THE LAST OF THE GRAPE SODA ON IT, JUST FOR YOU!"

Papyrus shoved the food and a fork into their fumbling hands.

"Um… thank you." They mumbled, not knowing what else to say.

They stared at the plate, their stomach already churning at the thought of putting its content anywhere near their lips. They scanned the inside of the cave, searching for anything that could save them from their predicament. Dull stalagmites stood around them in utter stillness, as though staring at them and saying _'Go on. Eat it. Eat it, you monkey. This is the most entertainment we've had in years.'_

_Bloody useless rocks._ Chara sneered, but the anger only left them in more hopelessness as they realised that nothing was going to save them from their social obligation.

"WHAT'S WRONG?"

"Hm?" They snapped to attention. "Oh! Nothing. It's… nothing."

They smiled unconvincingly before raising their fork high to demonstrate that they were about to proceed with what felt like their death sentence. They looked down and gulped down their primal terror that was screaming at them to throw the dish into the air and run, preferably off the cliff.

They poked the pasta, and winced when the fork and the food met with an echoing _chink._ When they lifted the fork again, there was a hard dent on the purple blob. The food almost appeared metallic.

"Papyrus?"

"YES?"

"May I ask where you put the empty aluminium can after you mixed the soda in?"

The skeleton tilted his head. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN? I PUT THE SODA _**IN**_ THE SPAGHETTI, REMEMBER?"

Chara stared at the food.

Upon closer inspection, there appeared to be thin black scribbling over some of the noodles. Upon an even closer inspection, they noted that one scribbling read _'Sweet and refreshing soda! Proudly produced by Mettatton Inc!'._

They put their fork down and placed the plate on their lap.

"So, what's our plan then? Let's get that straight."

"NYEH?" Papyrus blinked. "OH, THE PLAN! YES, WELL, I HAVEN'T REALLY THOUGHT ABOUT IT YET BUT I DID HAVE AN IDEA."

"Oh really? Please, do go on." Chara smiled, and without taking their eyes off of the skeleton, they placed their plate onto the ground besides them.

"WELL, NOW THAT WE CAN'T GET HELP FROM MY COMRADES, I THOUGHT WE COULD MEET MY OTHER FRIEND FOR HELP."

"Oh? And who is this friend, I wonder?" They shifted their foot, slowly pushing the plate away from the skeleton's sight.

"HIS NAME IS SNOWMAN! HE HAS THIS COOL MAGIC THAT LETS HIM SEE THINGS WITH HIS WHOLE BODY! HE CAN'T MOVE EITHER SO HE'S BEEN STARING AT THE SAME OLD PLACE HIS ENTIRE LIFE!"

Chara nodded along before frowning when they felt the plate get stuck somewhere. They scowled. "Well, _that_ is very _interesting_ , but how does _that_ help _us?_ "

"NOT MUCH!" Papyrus blinked again. "UHH, WHY DID YOU SPEAK WEIRD JUST NOW?"

"Weird? I have no idea what you're talking _about._ " Chara kicked the plate for the fifth time, yet even still the plate did not budge. They rolled their eyes and let out a loud huff. "Why do you want us to meet him if you think he's not going to help?"

"HM, YEAH, WELL, IT'S MORE OF A TEMPORARY STOP THAN A DESTINATION. THE PLACE HE'S AT IS NEAR WHERE ICE CAP AND JERRY HANGS OUT, SO THERE'S A CHANCE THAT HE MAY HAVE SEEN SOMETHING TODAY."

"Can we afford such distraction? We need something more solid than a 'may have'."

"SURE WE CAN! IF WE MAKE OUR ROUTE PASS THROUGH THERE, WE WON'T BE WASTING TIME AT ALL!"

"That is _if_ we knew where we were going in the first place. We still don't have a destination."

Papyrus hummed to himself, looking away, and Chara took the opportunity to find out what had happened to the plate. When they took a subtle glance down, they found that they had pushed the plate into the crease between the ground and the log where they were sitting on.

They looked up. Papyrus was still in his thoughts, his eyes trained on the ceiling above. They ducked and reached down.

"BEDTIME!"

They whipped backup, eyes wide and hair standing on their edge. "I-I beg your pardon?" They stuttered.

"IT'S BEDTIME!" Papyrus repeated. "JERRY AND ICE CAP _HAS_ TO BE BACK HOME BY NOW! OR ELSE THEY'LL GET IN BIG TROUBLE."

They peered down at the plate again, still stuck underneath the log. They pinched their nose bridge with a quite but frustrated sigh. "Alright? Are you sure? What if they've decided to sleep out?"

"NO NO, I WOULD KNOW IF THEY WERE. THEIR PARENTS ASK THE SNOWDIN GUARDS BEFOREHAND TO MAKE SURE THEY DON'T STAY OUT TOO LONG ON THOSE DAYS. WAIT, GIMME A SECOND..." Papyrus whipped out his phone and began tapping at the screen. Then, in a moment he held it up, showing Chara a screen with a message that read, _"He's home now. Do you want to talk to him today?"_

Chara read the message twice over before raising their brow. "What is this?"

"A MESSAGE FROM ICE CAP'S MUM! SHE MESSAGED ME BACK! HE'S HOME RIGHT NOW!"

Chara's other brow rose to join the first. "Then... we know how to find him."

"YES!"

If they had been standing Chara might have fallen on their behind. As they were now, all they could do was stare at the fire before them with unblinking eyes. "W-we need to get there." They took in a deep breath. "We need to get there. _Now_."

"OF COURSE!" Papyrus puffed his chest. "YOU FINISH YOUR FOOD, I'M GOING TO DRAW US A MAP!"

Chara paused, blinking out of their revere. "Uhh, yes, the food, right. I haven't finished it."

"YEAH! YOU JUST SORT OF PUT IT ON THE GROUND AND STARTED KICKING AT IT. IS THAT A HUMAN THING? YOU NEED SOME SALT?"

Chara nearly slapped a hand over their face. "No, it's perfectly fine without salt. Thank you very much." They growled between their teeth.

"WELL, EAT UP THEN! A BIT OF MY CULINARY MASTERPIECE WILL BE ENOUGH TO HEAL YOU TO YOUR FULL POTENTIAL!"

"Quite. A bit of monster food is exactly what I need. Oh but would you look at that! What is _that_ , I wonder?"

"NYEH?" Papyrus turned to look over his shoulder.

Not missing a beat, Chara whipped down, grabbed plate and flung it towards the exit of the cave with all their might, shooting a ball of magic to propel it out and beyond. They also threw a fireball after it just to be sure.

"WHAT AM I LOOKING AT?"

Chara sat back down, a content smile on their face. "Oh, it's not there anymore. A trick of the eyes, I suppose."

"HUH. OKAY." Papyrus turned back, then looked down at the human's neatly folded hands with a scowl. "UH, WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR FOOD?"

"Hm?" Chara tilted their head with a wide smile. "Oh the _food_. Yes, well, I'm afraid I've finished it all while you were looking away."

Papyrus frowned. "BUT WHAT HAPPENED TO THE PLATE?"

"The plate? Uhh… I've… eaten that as well! Yes. It appears I was quite more famished than I thought. Thank you for that."

"HUMANS... CAN EAT PAPER?"

"Humans can eat almost anything when things get desperate. Shall we flesh out our plan now?"

"UM, YEAH, I GUESS? IF YOU'RE THAT HUNGRY, I CAN GIVE YOU SECONDS?"

"NO!" Chara placed a hand over their mouth before coughing. "I mean, no thank you. I've had plenty, and I really don't think giving me any more would be healthy for someone my size."

"O…KAY? IF YOU'RE SURE?"

"I am." Chara sighed and not just as a sign to end the line of conversation. They looked up, a bright smirk on their lips. "Now. Let us talk plans."

The planning went on for another half an hour with the two of them going over facts and proposing speculations and possible actions they may take to counter it. Having Papyrus was a tremendous asset, as it had proven to be so time and time again. He knew each of the Canine patrol routes as well as ones they took in case of an emergency search. The search routes were usually reserved for missing children and others who may get lost in the forest, but it would be used in case of any enemy hunt as well. Using the notepad he pulled from his chest cavity, Papyrus drew them a map and the potential 'danger area' where the Canines would be likely to catch them. Then, with a red pen, he drew an illusive path that curved and strayed around each area.

Chara studied the path. It was a complex route with several back paddling, but it did avoid all the danger zones and lead them out of the forest, straight into Snowdin town.

_And it would only take us an hour._ They thought.

One hour. That was all it was going to take them to find the culprit. Finally, they were making progress to their search, if not ending it right there and then. They wouldn't have been able to do it without Papyrus, and this fact made them enormously grateful, and terribly guilty at the same time.

"Are you… okay with this?" Chara spoke out after what seemed like hours of contemplating.

"OKAY WITH WHAT?" Papyrus looked at them quizzically.

"Helping me." Chara elaborated. "Are you okay with it?"

"UHH, YEAH? WHY WOULDN'T I BE?"

"Because you're now a fugitive as well. I've costed you your job. Your _dream_."

"OH." Papyrus paused, his puzzled frown turning sad. "THAT'S… THAT'S ALRIGHT. IT'S NOT A BIG DEAL."

"Not a big deal? Papyrus, this is your _dream_ we speak of. Your dream _always_ matters. What else would you live for?" Chara's throat choked at the sight of the skeleton's wounded face. They took a step back, feeling like they've just physically struck their poor companion. "I… I'm not helping much am I? I'm sorry. I do not mean to have a dig at your situation. I just… What you've done... It's already is enough to get you court martialed. I do not want you imprisoned for helping me further. It's a possibility that I don't find very… agreeable."

Papyrus watched them silently, his smile now gone, replaced by one of sadness. Chara's stomach clenched at the sight, and they looked down at the map in their hand.

"You don't have to help me anymore." They began quietly. "If I simply follow this map, I can find Ice Cap and Jerry by myself and lead the investigation from there. You can go back to your comrades, tell them that I forced you to help me, that I… had some leverage against you and was threatening you. You can-"

A boney arm wrapped around their shoulder and pulled them into a half hug.

Chara blinked, then looked up at the skeleton in surprise.

"Papyrus?"

"YOU'VE…" He turned to them. "YOU'VE BEEN ALONE FOR A VERY LONG TIME, HUH?"

It was spoken as a question, but it felt more like a statement. Chara almost wanted to laugh at it, but when they looked up at Papyrus' pitying smile, their throat tightened up.

"I… don't see what that has to do with anything."

"HEY NOW, IT WASN'T AN ACCUSATION." He reassured with a warm grin. "LET ME ASK YOU SOMETHING, CHARA: DREAMS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO PEOPLE. THEY LIVE FOR IT, AS YOU SAY. THEY STRIVE FOR IT. EVERY MORNING PEOPLE WAKE UP, JUST TO GET A TINY BIT CLOSER TO IT. BUT DO YOU KNOW WHAT'S MORE IMPORTANT TO PEOPLE THAN THAT? THAN THEIR OWN DREAM?"

Chara blinked then shook their head. They truly did not know the answer.

"FRIENDS." The skeleton said simply. "FRIENDS ARE SO MUCH MORE IMPORTANT, DON'T YOU THINK?"

Chara was quiet for a moment. "But you turned your backs against your friends by helping me."

"YEAH WELL." He shrugged. "FRIENDS GET INTO SCUFFLE SOMETIMES. THEY GET INTO ARGUMENTS AND DISAGREEMENTS. IT CAN'T BE HELPED. IT HAPPENS. BUT IF THAT'S _ALL_ THAT IT TAKES TO BREAK OFF YOUR FRIENDSHIP, IT WASN'T MUCH OF A FRIENDSHIP IN THE FIRST PLACE." Papyrus sat up then, the melancholy disappearing from his face as the usual energetic smile returned. "YEAH. ME AND THE DOGS ARE A LOT BETTER FRIENDS THAN THAT. AND EVEN IF THAT'S NOT THE CASE, I'LL STILL BE FINE WITH THIS. EVEN IF I DO LOSE MY JOB, EVEN IF I GO TO PRISON. I'M DOING THIS BECAUSE YOU'RE MY FRIEND. EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE FINE."

"Papyrus…"

"HEY!" The skeleton suddenly exclaimed, looking at them with a twinkle in his eyes. "YOU KNOW WHAT WE SHOULD DO? WE SHOULD GO AND GET SOME NICE CREAM! NICE CREAM MAN WORKS LATE INTO THE NIGHT AND HE HAS A STORE JUST ON THE WAY HERE. WHAT DO YOU SAY?"

Chara swallowed hard and took several seconds to compose themselves before they could speak again. "That sounds lovely, dear sir, but I don't wish to take your money after everything you've done so far."

"NONSENSE! THAT'S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR!" The skeleton laughed, but he abruptly paused a second later, his face turning uncertain. "UMM, WE _ARE_ FRIENDS, RIGHT?" He asked sheepishly. "I KNOW WE'VE NEVER SAID IT OUT LOUD BUT I JUST KINDA ASSUMED, YOU KNOW? UHH, SORRY IF THAT MAKES YOU UNCOMFORTABLE."

Chara was speechless. They couldn't believe that he was being serious right now. "No, of course not sir. You are right. We are friends. We are _definitely_ friends."

"OH! GREAT!" Papyrus' expression lit up like a lightbulb. "THEN LET'S FOCUS ON RESCUING YOUR 'CHILD', MY DEAR FRIEND!" He gasped, his gloved hands slapping over his cheek as a dreamy look came over his face. "OH! THAT'S A GREAT FEELING! MY _FRIEND!_ YOU'RE MY _FRIEND_ CHARA! MY VERY FIRST HUMAN FRIEND! DO YOU THINK YOUR 'CHILD' WILL BECOME MY FRIEND TOO?"

"I have no doubt." Chara smiled knowingly. "In fact, let me loop you in on a secret." They leaned forward, darted their eyes side to side as if to check for any eavesdroppers and ushered Papyrus to do the same. When he did so with a curious look, Chara leaned further towards his ear and whispered, "I have a gut feeling, that the two of you? Will become the most _best_ of friends. Ones that will stay for life."

Papyrus pulled back and looked at them with the same gleeful shock of a child being told that he'll be having chocolate cake for dinner. "WOWEE! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOUR GUT PREDICT THOSE THINGS! I WISH _I_ HAD ORGANS TO DO THAT! IT LOOKS LIKE EVERY CARD ON THE TABLE IS COMING UP PAPYRUS!"

Chara smiled, watching the joy in the skeleton's face, his previous grimness nowhere to be found. It was amusing seeing him bounce between a responsible adult and a gormless child. It made him approachable, but also reliable when it truly mattered. No wonder the child had said that he was one of their best friends. Chara wondered how it was for Frisk to meet him for the first time. Had he been kind? Had he tried his odd puzzles on them?

_Child._ They thought, feeling for their connection without meaning to. The emptiness they felt made them grimace, but it was pushed away by pure resolve, their blood red eyes glowing with determination.

"It's time for us to move."

* * *

"What's the time now?"

"TEN TWENTY FIVE!"

"Five minutes then."

Chara let out a loud huff, adjusting the oversized orange scarf around their neck to give themselves some breathing room.

The plan was simple: Leave the cave, snake around the major search area and get to Snowdin town where they can confront Ice cap and Jerry. Fewer steps in a plan meant that there were fewer points of failure, after all. But regardless of how many there were, the points of failure still existed. Once they were out and walking about, they were going to have to move fast and discreet.

The major search area according to Papyrus was the 'official' search routes for the Royal guards, but there was actually very little that was stopping them from deviating from it. In fact, if the skeleton was to be believed, the Canine units were apparently known to be a little unpredictable in their widescale movement. There were bound to be overlaps between their path and the human-monster duo's. The two of them weren't going to have the time to hide their tracks once they were moving; footprints in the snow will be easy to trace; and the scent track they leave behind will be even more useful to the dogs. Once they were moving, they had to move fast, and there wasn't going to be any rest until they reached their goal.

But before that…

"Um, Papyrus?"

"YES?" Papyrus turned to them, putting out the last bits of their campfire with a handful of snow.

"Would you mind if I stepped outside first? I would like to get my muscles used to the outside temperature before we start moving."

Papyrus frowned. "YOU HAVE TO DO THAT? BLOODED CREATURES ARE WEIRD."

Chara merely smiled at the comment and hurried out of the cave, meeting the freezing air with a small bristle. They puffed a soft breath into their palm, shivering and feeling their wounds numb to the temperature. They hurried further out, a good few meters away from the mouth of the cave where they stopped and began looking about for a certain paper plate and purple aluminium mixed spaghetti.

They hadn't had the magic to sustain the flames before, meaning that the so called 'food' Papyrus gave them was still out here somewhere, still in tact instead of burnt to ash. If Papyrus came out here and accidentally found out that his new friend _threw away_ his food, he would no doubt be hurt, or perhaps even worse: he might _force_ them to eat his food. Neither outcomes were particularly desirable. While it was true that they hadn't healed all that much from the sleep alone, they were certain that Papyrus' cooking would do them more harm than good.

They scanned the area with their eyes alone, guessing that finding a blob of purple would be an easy task given the white background everywhere. And they were correct. Not even ten seconds of searching, they found the lump of spaghetti rolling about in the nearby snow, only half buried away from sight.

They quickly approached it, fully intent on kicking it off the cliff before anyone else found it. Or perhaps they could hide it under the lumps of snow that seemed to be all over the field. That'd be a nasty surprise for anyone who wants to clean up this place. Entertaining that trail of thought, they reached out with their foot to roll the discarded food into a large snowball.

Then, the moment the tip of their shoe touched the purple blob, a white paw reached out and touched it from the side.

Chara whipped their head and was met with the beady eyes of a little white dog in a squire's armour.

Eyes wide, Chara's heart dropped to the pit of their stomach.

"L… Lessie?"

The pup rolled out his tongue in a happy smile, his tail wagging furiously with excitement. " _Arf! Arf!"_

"CHARA!"

Chara whipped around back towards the cave. Papyrus was outside, sprinting towards them at first, but he quickly skidded to a halt when he was suddenly surrounded by three dogs of his own, each wielding an axe or a sword.

"Papyrus!" Chara took a half step forward, the need to help out their friend driving them, but then they looked down at themselves: their bandaged body, the purple bruises and yellow ointment peaking out around the edge. Their muscles still spasmed with aches with every step they took, clenched with every movement they made. Traveling through the forest as they were now was already going to be an arduous task. They were _definitely_ in no shape to fight three Royal guards at once.

_Three guards?_

Chara barely had a moment to gasp before they were jumping away to the side, just in time for a white fist to come down onto the now empty spot like a sledgehammer, causing the surrounding snow to leap up into the air in a small explosion. Chara covered their face with both arms, shielding their eyes from the shrapnels of rock, ice and snow.

Something twisted, and their entire body contorted as a loud roar ripped out of their throat. They landed not a few meter away, sheer willpower keeping them from falling over completely, and even then they still dropped to one knee. They wrapped their arms around their gut, their innards squirming like a worm on dry land. There was no blood, but dark bruise beneath the bandages burned as though someone had punched them over and over again. Their eyes watering with pain, they looked up to find the black eyes of a giant armoured dog looking down at them with a playful smile.

" _Bow wow_." He barked, his deep voice booming through the air like a trombone.

Chara snarled. Their body wasn't ready for a fight, especially for one they've lost before. They needed to run, but where could they possibly go?

The giant dog -Greater Dog, according to Papyrus- swung his fist at them again.

They forced their screaming body to duck away, then sidestepped the spear that stabbed straight for their chest. The stab quickly turned into a swipe, and they, with their body battered and in agony, was much too slow to dodge it. Cold metal plunged into their flesh and slid across their abdomen like a skater on an ice rink. They cried out, pressing their hand over the burning wound as they back paddled away.

The ground before them exploded again, Greater Dog's fist creating a large shockwave that threw them off their feet and onto their back. They landed with a thud, their expression a mix of shock, anger and confusion as they held onto their gut. Slowly, they lifted one trembling arm up and held it over their face for examination. Their limb came stained with a thin streak of red, and they knew that underneath both the bandages and their shirt, there was a bloody mess that was slowly killing them with each second that passed.

_Move._ The voices hissed. _Move now or you will die._

Chara turned over with a groan and tried to crawl, dragging their body across the snow with one arm and two knees.

They couldn't let it end like this. They've made a promise to the child. They were only now finally getting somewhere.

But despite their wishes, reality proved to be a cruel mistress.

A large shadow loomed above them, its mountainous form grand and menacing.

Chara glared up, and the giant dog smiled back.

Metal gauntlet reached down, and Chara, in a desperate act of defiance, threw a small ball of fire at the monster's face. He spun his spear around once and knocked the attack away like swatting a fly, but the fire was never meant to harm the dog in any way.

Using that moment of distraction, Chara kicked at the ground, frantically bringing themselves to a stand and made a run for it to the side, away from the guards.

They knew that it was futile, that they were much too slow even without their injuries to outrun a fully trained guard dogs. But they had to try. It was all they could truly do. If they were to be caught, they were going to go out fighting. They wouldn't ever forgive themselves otherwise.

Then, as quickly as they began to run, they tripped.

They didn't trip _on_ anything per se, but the ground beneath them simply seemed to disappear, and they began to fall down.

Fall.

And fall.

And fall.

And it was only after three seconds that they noticed that they were still falling, the wind blowing all around them, from the side, upwards, and below.

As they focused their eyes, they realised the dogs were nowhere to be found, and that there was a top of a cliff side before them in the distance becoming further and further away. And they finally realised: They were falling.

"CHARA!" Papyrus' head poked out of the cliff's edge, watching them in horror. But there was nothing he could do.

_Shit._ Chara thought, and silently, they plunged into the dark forest below, falling down the full ten storeys to their certain doom.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Aaaand done. This chapter and the next was supposed to be just one chapter, but the cliffhanger was too obvious to not go for it.**
> 
> **The next chapter will be a short one as well, so let's hope I can make it fun enough.**
> 
> **Ideas abandoned for this chapter: Chara & Papyrus cooking show! Chara, the terrible cook. Chara, the excellent cook. Dancing mushrooms. And pies.**
> 
> **Up next: The hidden boon**


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: Hello! Hope I haven't been gone for too long. Here's the next chapter for this story!**
> 
> **This is a bit of a set up chapter along with the previous one so I hope that it doesn't disappoint too much!**
> 
> **As always, thank you for everyone who left a comment/followed/faved. I always live for the moment I get an email from FFN & AO3 :D**
> 
> **Anyways, not much else to go on with here besides me going insane over how I should edit this at least once more. But that's boring! So, on with the show!**

* * *

Admittedly, falling to one's death was something Chara was very well familiar with. Not only had they fallen down to Underground from the top of the Pit in the past, they had seen a few people fall to their death in their brief life as well.

The last one they'd seen had been a boy -a young man really- only a few years older than themselves being pushed off a building's rooftop while Chara and all the little ones were forced to watch. It was supposed to be a lesson of sort, a lesson about what happened to those who tried to escape. The little ones were frightened stiff, listening to the boy's cracked scream as he fell to the forest below, then gasping or wailing when he was quickly silenced with a resounding thud not a few seconds later. It took Chara weeks to incite another escape after that.

Though they had been spooked as well, Chara never believed that the keepers were going to throw any more of them away as they did. That boy was a special case. He was starting to reach the age where he was no longer attracting customers. His voice had fully cracked at that point, body hair growing in patches, and his skin was turning rough with pimples. It had been full two weeks since his last service was requested when he was thrown off. No service meant no money, and no money meant no worth. That was why they killed him, not because he tried to escape or something silly like that.

Oh no, failed escape attempts warranted a far greater punishment than just death. Death was easy. Death was kind. What the keepers did to those who tried to escape multiple times... Chara knew the punishment better than anyone else.

_But now you're here. What crowning achievement you've earned yourself. Are you going to do something about this or are you just going to reminisce like some old hag on a rocking chair?_

Chara's mind snapped into full attention, shoving all the thoughts of the past out the window as they faced their new predicament head on, specifically at the ground rapidly closing in on them from below.

They were falling.

And they only had a few seconds left before they were a red splotch on the floor.

_Ah shit._

Thousand thoughts bombarded them in that moment, voices screaming at them to do something. _Anything_. Ten storey was rather short for a fall. The boy was thrown at half of this height and it only took him three seconds to hit the ground.

And that meant that they now had less than six seconds to act.

_Six seconds left._

_Six seconds._

_Oh crap._

Immediately, they thought about calling for help, but there wouldn't be anyone who could help them as they were.

_Five seconds left._

They thought about stabbing the wall with their knife to create a grip, but quickly dismissed it as impossible with how their body was right then.

_Four seconds left._

They thought about shooting a pellet into the forest below, cause an explosion that will create a shockwave to push them upwards. But did that even make sense in practice?

_Three seconds left._

_The same amount of time as that boy._

_Crap, crap, CRAP._

They had so many ideas but only a single moment to debate each one. And in this panic, all of their ideas were clumping together into a incomprehensible mess, made even worse by the roaring wind constantly blowing against their ear. They were already half way down but nowhere near coming up with a solution. They needed more time.

They needed more time.

_**Oh, you are so fucking useless!** _

One of their arms shot out to the side, towards the cliffside, stretching out as though it was trying to grab it.

They turned to it in shock. They had _not_ willed their body to do that. They didn't even think to move their body at all.

_What on eart-?_

_**Shut up.** _

They sucked in a sharp breath, their body stiffening at the dark, burning voice that cut through them like a knife. The whole world suddenly lost its colour, a sure sign of their magic being drained to nothing. Then their arm yanked back as though pulling on an invisible rope, and the cliffside below them exploded with a row of red vines, each with the thickness of a human arm, growing at an alarming rate. They criss-crossed over each other in an instant, weaving into a simple but sturdy net.

In a single second, Chara fell into it.

The force of the fall was too much for the vines to stop completely, but it still acted as a flexible branch that absorbed a vast majority of the drop.

Chara rolled, tumbled, and the vines gently let them fall again like a raindrop rolling off a leaf.

Falling again, they entered the tree line.

A branch struck them on the shoulder. One bumped them against their head. Then as they continued to fall, hurt and dazed, they were whipped by a series of of thin, snow covered branches that threw at them a stinging torment of both burns and cold.

Finally, the branches disappeared, and they came through to a clear fall once again.

They landed in the snow with a loud thud, flat on their stomach.

With the height they had fallen from, no matter what they had done to mitigate it, they had expected themselves to be knocked out. Chara wishedthey _had_ been knocked out because now they were squirming on the ground, their eyes wide and mouth hung open in shock as they held onto their bleeding gut which felt as though someone had shoved a knife into them and whisked the blade about in their inside as though whisking egg yolks. Sound was coming out of their mouth but it never reached the point that could properly describe how much agony they were in.

But despite that their legs were kicking, their body twisting and their arms squeezing their midsection for even the tiniest bit of reprieve from the physical torture, they couldn't help but laugh. Because what all of it went to show, went to _prove_ , was that they were still alive.

_I'm alive._ They cackled inwardly. _I'm bloody alive, you stupid mutts. Ha!_

They rolled over onto their back, a smug grin on their face even as their body continued to twist with sharp spasms.

Then a large clump of snow fell on their face, and the smile was immediately vanished off with a long groan.

* * *

#  **Chapter 15**

Chara sat at the base of a tree, their hand flickering with orange glow as they tried to heal their wound. The cut had ripped when they hit the ground and the bottom of their shirt was now dyed thick in red, its wetness freezing in the night air. Though, the bandages Papyrus applied -as well as the thick wool of their own shirt- was holding the wound together, they were still damaged, their mind a haze of foggy mess.

They continued their attempt at healing, but a minute later, the glow in their hand finally died and their vision turned grey as their entire body slackened as though they were drugged. With what energy they had left, they sighed.

This was it then. Their magic was depleted, and their wound was nowhere near closed. The air was cooling around them and their body, both hurt and starved, was unable to produce the necessary heat to keep them alive.

They may have survived the fall, but it was becoming ever more clear that all they had accomplished was prolong the inevitable.

They were going to die.

_**What are you doing?** _

Chara flinched. The voice was back, the same voice from before that had told them to shut up. It was in them, boiling, _gurgling_ with rage.

_**You wish to rot here? Get up.** _

Chara growled. They were not in the mood for this."I can't."

_**Get. Up.** _

"I said I can't."

_**Get. Up. Get! Up! GET! UP!** _

"Fuck off!"

There was a roar, one Chara couldn't tell if it was in their head or came out of their own lips, and suddenly their body lurched forward, their free arm stretching out before dragging them across the snow. Scream ripped out of their throat as their wound scraped against the dirt.

_**Move, you stupid whore! You will not die here. This pathetic land will not be your end!** _

Chara grit their teeth and dragged their body another half a meter, biting down on another scream with a heavy growl.

They were in hell, pain ripping through them like they were being eaten alive by a swarm of rats. But even still, they crawled on. Something inside them was urging them, _commanding_ them to move _._ It didn't care that they didn't want to listen. It didn't care that they were in agony and wanted nothing but to rest. It wanted them to live, to _survive,_ and they listened without question, because in the end, they wanted to survive as well.

After their third drag, after they oriented themselves enough, they grit their teeth and crawled up on their fours, then finally on to both feet, using a nearby tree for support. It took them several seconds, but eventually they were standing on their own, albeit with a hunch.

They looked about the world, cold and silent. The forest seemed to stretch on forever on all sides, an endless visage of black, white and green as far as the eye could see. Everything looked the same. Everything _was_ the same save for the cliffside behind them which they fell down from. They had no idea which direction to go.

_**You have the map. Find the way back to Snowdin**_. _**Find a way back up the cliff.**_

Chara scowled, looking down at their blood soaked gut. They weren't sure how long they had before the cold and the bloodloss got to them. They weren't even sure they had enough in them to get back up to the cliff much less to the town.

_**Do you have a better idea then?**_ _**Papyrus has given his freedom to help you, and now you are going to spit at his generosity?!**_

"Papyrus." They gasped the name under their breath. Their friend had been captured by the dogs, that poor man. All because they hadn't mentioned their true nature when the two first met. What will happen to him now? They hoped that he managed to get away. And if not, they hoped that the Royal punishment for betraying the kingdom wasn't so harsh.

_**If you don't want to insult his sacrifice, then you will move.** _

Chara breathed, languid and harsh.

They looked up at the endless forest before them.

Gritting their teeth and hand over their stomach, they began walking.

* * *

They walked for half an hour -or at least what they _believed_ was half an hour- following closely to the cliff's wall so that they were sure not to miss any sort of slope that they could climb. The blood soaking their gut had already half frozen over, their red-caked hands numb and dead. They've lost sense of their legs a while ago now too, and their dragging walk was nothing but an autonomous movement driven by unconscious instinct to survive. They questioned how long they had before they collapsed. They questioned how long they had before they took their last breath.

_**Move. Move!** _

Chara frowned at the voice urging them to continue despite continuing was clearly the only thing that they were doing.

_Talk about whipping a perfectly good mare._ They grumbled, but the voice didn't let up. If anything, their comment seemed to fuel the voice to become even harsher, more angry and demeaning.

It had been getting steadily stronger with each step, this voice, to a point where it was now the only sound that Chara was capable of hearing. Everything else was muffled as though by a piece of cloth over their ears: the sound of their breath, the crunching of snow beneath their feet were all being muted by the sound of furious hisses and insults being shot at them from the dark.

It puzzled Chara to hear this voice, a voice that was so alike yet so different from the others in their head. When the other voices spoke, they spoke as a mob, talking, shouting over each other to gain even the smallest bit of priority over one another. But this voice didn't do that. It _knew_ that it was in charge, and the other voices somehow understood this and kept quiet when this voice spoke: This voice that burned and boiled; This voice whose demand was so difficult to ignore.

They wondered where it came from, what had triggered it to manifest in their mind. A voice so distinct didn't come from nowhere after all, and the fact that it was trying to keep them alive meant that their mind had conjured it up to help them in times of need.

_But when? When did it manifest? And how did it become so strong so quickly?_

_**If you have the energy to think, then put it to good use and think about how you can survive this situation.** _

Chara blinked. There it was again, a demand, a command. Yet they didn't feel the need to object. They listened and obeyed, not because they were compelled to, but because they agreed with what the voice was saying. Survival was priority right now. If they didn't survive, then all this thinking was ultimately pointless. They could ignore the voice if they wanted. It just spoke sense at the moment, that was all. It always spoke sense.

Th _ **e**_ _**vOice**_ _**w**_ as ne _ **Ve**_ r w _ **roN**_ g.

And so they walked on, no longer thinking of the voice and focusing on survival instead.

Then, not a minute later, they came to a stop.

They had stepped on a twig, and while that alone was nothing special, it was the odd, heavy silence that followed that gave them pause.

The voice had stopped, the air still. They had thought that they were alone before, that they had been walking in complete silence except for the voice in their head from the start, but this new silence was so much heavier than before, so _real_ , that it snapped Chara out of their cloudy, fading mind and made them listen.

They turned their hooded eyes between the dark trees, searching for a sign of something as they held their breath for several, hopeful moment.

"Hello?" They rasped. "Is anyone there?"

A second went by.

Two seconds.

Three.

Then, there was a jingling.

A series of tiny bells ringing in chorus like a christmas chime.

Chara perked up.

"H-hello?" They tried again, tripping over themselves to speak louder. "Is anyone there? Please, I need help. Hello?"

More jingling, closer this time.

Chara caught movement in the corner of their eyes, and when they turned, they saw an odd branch of some sort poking out from behind one of the tree. It was coloured a healthy brown in contrast to the deep black of the rest of the trees in the forest, decorated with a shining christmas tinsels that went from the base, all the way up to the leaves tipped top. If that wasn't enough, the branch wasn't attached to a tree at all. In fact, Chara could see a figure hiding behind the tree, poking a head out just enough to watch them with a long feline eye.

"Excuse me?" Chara stepped forward, trying to peek around.

Their watcher took a step back. "S-stay where you are."

Chara immediately stopped.

The voice was male, low and gruff, with a hint of fear in them. A slow clicking of teeth echoed in the air, followed by a harsh exhale much like that of a bull. Chara immediately marked it as a sign of nervousness, perhaps even hostility.

"I do not wish to harm you, sir." They raised their palms. "I am in need of your help, in fact. I am injured and I… I believe that I am close to death. I need healing. Rest."

The clicking stopped, and Chara felt a spark of hope.

"I've fallen from the cliff behind me. I used my magic to save myself but… it wasn't enough. Do you have food you can spare? A way to contact medical assistance?"

There was a short pause, one which Chara spent holding their breath, a breath which they only released when the monster finally stepped out of his cover.

Chara almost flinched when they laid eyes upon the monster. He was a cervine, a reindeer that had sharp feline eyes of a predator and an odd sideway mouth like that of a beetle, armed with rough carnivorous teeth. He didn't exactly have a welcoming appearance, and Chara would have been lying if they said if they weren't at least slightly frightened by his looks. If there was anything that appeared friendly about him, it was the series of christmas decoration that was placed around his being: christmas bells, glittering tinsels, ornaments, candy canes and bloody holiday stamps. He was like the walking representation of the yuletide, and Chara hoped that he was just as generous as the holiday he seemed to represent.

They gave the monster a tentative smile, and the monster seemed to smile back.

"You think I'm stupid don't you?"

Chara blinked. That had not been the answer they were expecting. "I-I beg your pardon?"

"I can't believe this." The beast snorted with laughter, glaring at Chara with what was clearly pure contempt. "You whippersnappers think I'm going to fall for the same trick again? _Three_ times in a row? I knew you have no respect for your elders but this is just insulting! Insulting, you hear me?!"

"I.. I don't-"

"And here I thought I was going to have a bit of peace for the night. You seriously don't know when to quit, do you? Isn't it past your bedtime already? Don't your parents check up on you?"

Chara stared, eyes wide in shock.

"Well, don't just stand there. Leave! Get out! You and your friends had your fun, but now I'm at my limit! You will leave now or I'm going to whoop your sorry ass!"

Chara quickly backed up as the reindeer raised his hooves and stomped violently at the ground. They shook their head, unable to shake the feeling that they were missing a great deal of context, like they'd just walked into a stranger's house and was asked to cook a butter chicken curry for a dying cat.

"P-please sir, I think there may be a misunderstanding. I have no idea what you are- _Gah!_ " Chara stumbled back, both hands flying to their stomach.

The beast had poked them in the gut with his antlers.

"Ha! Take that! You want to put more decorations on me? See if I'll let you! Hi-yah!"

" _Bloody-!_ " Chara sucked in a sharp breath, closing their eyes and holding the throbbing aches at bay. They were not prepared for this. They needed help, not more fights. "Please stop doing that."

"Oh yeah? What are you gonna do about it?"

Chara grimaced. "Stop."

"Why don't you make me? Hyah!"

Chara yelped and stumbled back.

"Not so tough without your friends now, are you?" The beast laughed. "No one to hold me down while you put bells near my _ears?_ No one for you to make jokes and laugh with about my sorry _state?_ You stupid kids needs to be _disciplined!_ And since your parents are apparently too soft to do it, I'm going to do it for them! Take this! And this! And THIS!"

He jabbed them again with each sentence; again, and again, and again, and again, until-

"I said," Chara's hand grabbed the antlers to a halt. " _ **FUCKING STOP IT!**_ "

The sound of their roar echoed into the night, and in that moment there was a surge of magic from within them, a weak ember coaxed to brief life by rage.

"Hey, what the-? Let go!" The monster began to struggle, but it was all for naught. The strength at which Chara held on to was far beyond what he could counter on his best days. It was as though his antlers had gotten embedded into a rock, and only Chara had a say in whether he was going to be freed or not. "Let me go you bastard! Let go!"

But of course Chara didn't. They were a statue, stoic and unmoving even while holding onto a monster twice their size with just one hand. Their body may have been broken, their surge of magic a mere ember compared to the bonfire that was their full potential. But even still, they had power, something that was burning inside them. Something dark. Something hurtful.

They saw the creature before them, and hatred began to boil up from within.

_**Kill him**_.The voice growled, breaking its silence with this heinous command. _**How dare he touch a Royal Princess? A punishment is in order, oh yes. Killing him now would be justified.**_

Chara grit their teeth. The voice sounded so... _right_. They were so angry and they wanted nothing but to kill this foolish creature for their insolence.

But...

_I… I need his help._ They said. _I need to get food somehow. Killing him now would spell my own doom._

_**Then eat him.** _

Chara's heart went cold at the suggestion. _What?_

_**Look at him you idiot. He's a reindeer, a walking pile of meat. Think about it. Venison will be ever so pleasant. Rip his leg off and chew on his flesh.** _

_I…_ Chara didn't know what to say. _I-I can't. He's a monster. He'll turn to dust the moment I kill-_

_**Killing him and eating him are two completely different task.** _

Chara paled in that moment. They should have been revolted. Everything inside them was screaming at them that what their mind was suggesting was beyond disgusting and horrifying. But right now, images of themselves slicing up the beast's body while he screamed, burning the strips of red flesh and chewing on the soft meat, it all flashed before their eyes. It made their mouth water; their stomach growl. They gulped, and ironically enough, the action snapped them out of their revere, making their gut churn at what they had just been thinking, at what they had even _considered_.

"Let me go!" The reindeer's words echoed through the forest, and as though touching a hot coal, Chara gasped and instantly released their grip. The monster, not having expected them to actually comply to his demand, was thrown back and quickly bumped his head straight into a tree trunk. With a loud thunk, he took a confused step back where he tripped on a rock and fell flat on his belly. And like a finishing touch to the terrible situation, a mountain glob of snow built up on the branch above fell on him with a loud _splat!_ burying him in a pile of white.

Chara sucked in a sharp breath, eyes wide in horror. "A-are you alright?"

"Stay away!"

Chara flinched and stood still as the beast shook the snow off and struggled back up on shaky legs.

"I knew it!" He cried. "I knew you were in cahoots with those kids! You're all bullies, the lot of you! Why are you doing this to me?! What did I ever do to you?!"

Chara winced, guilt filling them. There was obviously some misunderstanding going on here, and them retaliating so physically as they did may not have been the best course of action. Unlike the guards, this monster hadn't tried to kill them or anything after all, yet now he's gotten hurt because of them. It really wasn't fair, and Chara felt the need to make it right.

They cautiously approached, trying to see if they could offer help. "Excuse me?"

The monster jumped then scrambled away from them. "Wh-what? What do you want? I said stay away!"

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to help."

"Yeah? Like you just tried to _help_ me by holding me down like I'm some animal?"

Chara grimaced again, then scowled as they noticed something glistening in the light. "A… are you _crying_?"

" _No_." The beast audibly sniffled.

"Goodness, are you hurt? Did you land on something?"

"No."

"I'm sorry if I injured you in any way. I just-"

"I said I'm not hurt!" The beast stomped his hooves. "And what do you care anyway? You're the one who attacked me in the first place!"

Chara frowned, not knowing how they should answer. They were pretty sure that it was the reindeer who had attacked _them_ first. "I… apologise for my behaviour, sir. But you must believe me that I'm not hostile. I just wanted you to stop _poking_ me with your horns. I'm injured and I need food. Otherwise, I'm afraid I'll-"

"Yeah right." The beast snorted. "You think you can trick me by sending someone new and covering them in ketchup? You're just a hooligan, like all them other whippersnappers around the forest who put all these stupid decorations on me." He then shook his head in demonstration, causing the bells hung around the antlers to jingle.

"Oh." Chara blanked. "You mean those _aren't_ part of you?"

"Of course not! Who the hell grows Christmas decorations from their body?"

"Well, I mean, with how the monsters are, I thought..." Chara trailed off, meeting eyes with the beast who gave them a warning glare. They cleared their throat. "Ehem. Nevermind."

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

Ignoring the snide remark, Chara studied the bells again, specifically the tiny bundles that were dangling practically right next to the beast's ears. "I say, that must get awfully annoying quite quickly.

"Yeah? No duh, kid." The reindeer sniffled again. "Just leave me alone. I just want to be left in peace."

And with that, he turned around away from Chara and plopped down unceremoniously on his hinds, and began sobbing to himself in earnest.

Chara winced, their heart breaking for the pitiful creature. They opened their mouth to apologise, to console, but they stopped themselves short. They had tried words many times now. Sometimes, they knew, actions spoke volumes louder than just words.

Pressing their lips, they walked over to the monster in a casual pace, not too fast yet not too slow that he would be caught by surprise by their presence. It didn't seem to do much good as the reindeer appeared much too engrossed by his crying to notice them approaching. It was only when Chara touched the ribbon on his antlers and caused the bells to jingle again that he noticed them there.

"What are you doing?!" He jumped, but then froze when he suddenly realised, his movement didn't cause a series of god awful jingles stabbing at his ears. And it was in this moment that he saw the bells on Chara's hand.

Chara didn't speak, but tossed the decoration aside like a cheap trash.

The reindeer stared at them, confused.

After a moment of staring at one another, Chara ushered him to come closer, their face neither too friendly or too hostile. It was a peace offering that Chara hoped he wouldn't be too afraid to take.

At first the reindeer didn't move, no doubt suspicious of the monarch's intentions. But after a moment of no movement from Chara or the trees around them, he cautiously obeyed.

He knelt down before them, his feline eyes glued on their blood red. Chara raised their hand slowly and openly, and when he didn't flinch back, they slowly moved to a touching range.

Then, without another word, they got to work.

The roll of tinsels went first, then the colourful holiday stamps on his forehead, a snowman sticker on his hindquarters, and finally the necklace of plastic mistletoe miraculously fitted over his horned head and down his neck.

All of them weren't exactly difficult to remove. They weren't glued on anywhere, and for anyone with a hand, it would have been a simple pull of the ornaments at a particular direction to get rid of them. But for a reindeer, this was a monumental task, nigh impossible to perform with cloven hooves. If no one was to help him, this monster would have had to live with the odd additions to his body for the rest of his life. Chara wondered who on earth could have been cruel enough to do such a thing to this poor creature. Three particular monsters came into mind, but they ignored it as just them projecting their anger.

Finally finished, they stepped back to allow the reindeer to check his body himself. The beast opened his feline eyes, and after several adjusting blinks, he turned his head to look down around himself.

"Hey…. I.. I'm free. I'm free! Haha!" He yelled with glee, then proceeded to hop joyously about, swinging and stomping his front hooves about like the happy cervine he was. Then he remembered his audience and quickly dropped back down on his fours. "Um… right. Ahem. Uhh… thanks kid. I guess uhh… I guess you really weren't playing tricks on me then, huh?"

Chara smiled at him, happy to see their subject happy. "It was a pleasure. And no I was not. I don't even know who would have done this to you in the first place."

"Oh, no one good, I'll tell you that much!" The monster fumed through his nostrils before becoming timid to again. "I uhh… I'm sorry I poked you. I very mad, but that's no excuse. It wasn't very nice."

"No sir, please, you were just being cautious. I should be the one apologising for manhandling you as I did."

"No no, it's alright. Considering I was being a real jerk to you first, I'll say it's even." He clicked his maw and trotted around a small circle, a spring in his steps. "Phew! That is _much_ better. Those hooligans thought they'd ruin my week, but look at me now!"

"Um, may I ask: Who exactly did this to you?" Chara took the chance to ask. "It really was in poor taste. What were they thinking putting a stamp on your forehead?"

"Oh, don't get me started on those whippersnappers." The monster's mood switched to sour in an instant. "I always knew they were bad kids, playing around in the forest without ever caring about others who live here. But this is by far the worst thing I've seen them do to anyone. I mean, I try my best to avoid them usually, but today they just came at me! They kept yammering on about how they were a hero now, that we were going to be free of the barrier! Some weird roleplaying game they're playing, I thought. I should have ran when I had the chance. They were going to _celebrate_ , and so they decided to decorate me to 'fit the occasion'!"

If Chara had been drinking, they were sure they would be in a coughing fit right then. As they were now though, they simply froze, their heart stopping for a whole second at the revelation. Then, as the words sank in, their heart came back with vengeance, pounding so hard that Chara feared that it was about to burst. "I…." They whispered, breathless. "I beg your pardon?"

"Yeah, crazy, I know! And I told them as much but they never listen to me! Rude little yobs. They won't know what manner is if it came and hit them over the head."

Chara stumbled back. They felt their throat tighten and they swallowed with some difficulty. "Were these 'hooligans'…. Were they Snowdrake, Ice Caps and Jerry?"

The beast turned to them with surprised eyes, and Chara knew the truth, right there and then. "You know them too?"

"Where did you meet them?" They spoke so quickly the whole sentence sounded like one word.

"Uhh, a few hours ago. Why?"

"Were they carrying a large block of ice with them? With something in the middle?"

"Umm, yeah, I think I saw that. I thought it was weird why anyone would need to carry ice around Snowdin, you know?"

"Do you know where they took it?!"

"Whoa, relax kid. I don't know. I mean, I ran away after they put these decorations on me. I didn't see them again after that."

Chara immediately slumped, their breath escaping them as all of their adrenaline flushed out of their system like air from a popped balloon. "Then you don't know." They rasped, and they stumbled back until their back hit a tree,.

They slid down, their harrowed eyes glued on the snow on the ground. As they sat there in crushing disappointment, tears began to blur their vision.

_Of course_. They thought. _Of course he wouldn't know. That would be too easy. And nothing in my life ever goes easy, does it?_

They felt so stupid. They had hoped again. They had let themselves become happy by a chance without verifying it as a guarantee first.

_You're so stupid._ The voices, the normal ones, began to snark at them. _Getting all giddy and hopeful, and for what? You should have learned this lesson years ago. You are so dumb. You dumb. Fucking. Whore._

There was a few moment of silence, ones which Chara had spent listening to the voices get worse and worse. They had to cover their eyes, to hide the tears that threatened to spill. They didn't argue with the voices nor fight back. They deserved this misery that was falling onto them. They always deserved them, every last one.

A set of hooves clopped towards them.

"That ice thing. Is it important to you?"

Chara grit their teeth so hard that their jaw began to hurt. "It's... the most important thing I've looked for in a long time."

The reindeer's maw clicked, slow and deliberate.

Finally, cloven hooves stomped the ground. "Grab my antlers."

Chara sniffed, then looked up. "I.. I'm sorry?"

"Grab my antlers." The monster repeated. "Come on, do it, like you did before."

Chara was hesitant for another moment before they tentatively complied, grabbing onto the fur covered appendage with one hand.

"Now, break it off."

Their eyes shot wide. "W-what?"

"Gee, you have a hearing problem kid? Break it off. Just don't do it too hard. Twist your wrist. You'll see."

Another hesitation. Chara was very much confused by this sudden turn of event. They were certain antlers were bones growing out of a deer's head. If they were to break it, the resulting pain would be immeasurable.

"A-are you sure?"

"Wow. No, I'm not sure. And that's why I'm _literally ordering you to break off my antlers_."

Chara scowled. They were not in the mood to be berated by a bloody four legged animal.

_You want me to break your bone? Have it your way._

They twisted the appendage as instructed, twisting it and tipping it to the side as though snapping off an icicle. Then, they gasped when the hard antlers broke off with barely a protest nor sound, snapping off as though it was already about to break off at the gentlest breeze.

Suddenly, sweet, warm aroma filled the air, making Chara's mouth water. They lifted the broken appendage where the smell was the strongest, and saw that the inside of the antler was coloured fresh yellow with a brown swirl going to the center.

They sniffed it again, and with shaking hand, licked the brown swirl.

"This… this is a chocolate log." Chara said, stunned.

The monster snorted. "Yeah. Consider it a thanks for getting rid of the decorations."

Chara turned to him then smiled gratefully. However, the expression did not last, and they looked down at the soft cake in their hand with a wistful look.

"Hey, come on kid. What's with the frowny face?"

They shook their head but didn't speak, not wanting to voice how lonely they were feeling right then. They wished they could show their mother this cake, their father, Asriel, Papyrus, and finally the child. They felt alone, and it's been awhile since it has affected them so much.

There was a sigh. The reindeer was sighing, and Chara was quick to rub their eyes of any tears. They were being rude by seeming ungrateful, and they nothing if not for their manners. They stood up, ready to give a proper thanks to this monster for his hospitality when he spoke,

"I know where they are."

Chara paused, not certain what he had meant. "I'm sorry?"

"Well, I don't _know_ where they are, but I do have a hunch. I thought about chasing after them to force them to take the decorations off, but I figured they'd put more on if-"

"Stop. Stop!" Chara said, then when the reindeer did stop, they took in two, long breaths. "What... do you mean… you have a _hunch?"_

"On where those kids are." The monster said easily. "It's their 'secret base'. They go there all the time, hide all the 'treasures' they find. I mean, not that that it's much of a secret to me. If you've lived in this forest as long as I have, you can find that damned place with your eyes closed."

Chara had to take another breath. Then another, and another. Finally, they closed their eyes for the final breath, then looked up. "You're saying you know where they put the large ice block they were carrying."

"I'm saying I _might_ know. I mean, that's the only place they have besides their home."

Chara's insides were suddenly doing the flips.

Without a pause they shoved the entire chocolate roll in their hand into their mouth. The bread was warm, moist and the cream was full and sweet. Soon, their body began to glow, the stinging aches all over their body receding into nothing. They closed their eyes, lips slightly parted in a silent gasp. The sharp cut in their gut burned as if on fire, the muscles under their skin tensing hard. Then, slowly, it all dissipated, their body relaxing, the cut on their gut disappearing from one end to the other as though being sealed up like a zipper. When they opened their eyes, they looked down and pressed a careful hand over their belly. The soft flesh beneath barely protested at the pressure. They were healed.

"Thank you." Chara smiled. "You saved my life."

"Don't worry about it. The name's Gyftrot, by the way."

"Chara. Charmed. And though I hate to be a bother so quickly after our introduction, I have a request to make."

Gyftrot laughed. "You want me to take you to the hideout?"

"My, you already know me so well." Chara grinned like an imp.

"Well Chara, I'll be glad to do this. But I'm going to have to ask you to take the same sized piece from my other antler first. You look like you're pretty hungry and it's better for me to have a balanced weight on my head."

"Oh! But of course." Chara took hold of Gyftrot's other antler and broke the uneven piece off which came off as softly as the first despite their initial sturdiness. Chara questioned how the biology of such creature even worked, but decided there were better time for such questions and instead placed the tasty treat into their mouth. There was another warm tingle through their body as the magic food searched for any repairable parts and soon enough Chara felt their entire body become light with energy.

They raised their hand, flexed it, then willed their magic forth.

A white fire burst into life, large and wicked despite the freezing temperature. Chara smirked.

"Nice flame you got there." Gyftrot snorted nonchalantly. "You got a target for it?"

"Oh, I think I have someone's name on it." Chara said playfully, their eyes glowing red. "Some naughty children in need of a lesson."

Gyftrot's maw opened wide as his feline eyes narrowed into a focused slit. Chara realised that he was grinning as well.

"Come on." He said as he knelt before them. "Get on, and hold on to my antlers. I'm not gonna slow down because I got someone on my back."

Chara's eyes widened in surprise at the offer, but the grin on their face never faded. They've always wanted a horse to ride when they first became a princess. What better steed than one that had a similar grudge as their own?

Chara mounted onto the monster, hurried yet careful not to hurt him at the same time. Then, finally, they braced themselves, and before they could even blink, Gyftrot charged off. Despite the rush of air crashing onto their face, the smile on Chara's lips never went away.

* * *

Alone in a cave, Snowdrake pecked at the plate of cold cake and strawberry ice cream his friends had got for him for dinner that night. It was hardly a meal for a growing teen, but for a runaway, it was a dish fine served in a top class restaurant.

There was a knock on the entrance, and by the sound of things Jerry had forgotten the secret knock again.

"Oh my freaking god." Snowdrake sighed.

They really needed to do something about that guy. It was fine that he hung out with them, but did he really have to be so crass and all self-important? It was getting on everyone's nerves. With an angry frown and a stern talk in mind, Snowdrake opened the door.

"Dude, how many times do I have to tell you, you need to-"

He froze.

He wasn't staring at his friends.

He was staring into a very angry, very red eyes of a very familiar looking kid.

A human kid.

"Oh sh-" Before he could finish the sentence, the human shoved him aside with frightening strength and charged into the secret hideout.

He wanted to say that they weren't allowed, that this was a secret hideout and a private properties of the Snowdin Ice Gang, but he was immediately cornered by someone quite unexpected.

"Oh. Hey Gyftrot."

The beast monster glared and clicked his maw menacingly in response.

Snowdrake gulped.

There was a series of rummaging and crashing, and the human suddenly came charging back out. They came straight for him, and before he knew it, they had him pressed up against the cave's wall, a sharp knife held right below his beak.

"Where are they?" The kid hissed with a dangerously low voice.

"I-I-I don't know." Snowdrake answered as quickly as he could, trying not to talk too much so that his bobbing throat doesn't tickle the knife's edge.

"Don't you dare play games with me, I have all the reasons to hurt you right now! _Where_ are they?!"

"I'm telling you the truth! I-I don't know!"

"Then your friends?"

Snowdrake shook his head faster than he'd ever done in his whole life.

The knife embedded into the stone wall next to his head like it was made of butter. "YOU HAVE A MOUTH! SPEAK WORDS!"

"Waah! Okay okay okay! I-I'll tell you. I'll tell you everything. Please, j-j-j-just don't hurt me. I don't wanna die."

"Die?" The human giggled, a horrible, ugly giggle that sent chills down his already icy body. "If you don't talk, dying would be a mercy. You would be _begging_ me to kill you. I won't need to hurt you if you just shut up and tell me where the child is, understood?"

"U-understoo-""THEN WHY THE HELL AREN'T YOU TALKING YET?!"

Snowdrake had to close his eyes, otherwise, he didn't think he could handle how bat shit insane this human was.

Gulping, he opened his eyes again and looked to and fro between the human and Gyftrot who didn't seem the least bit sympathetic to his situation. He swore under his breath. It was fun at the time, but it appeared playing that short lived prank on the deer monster was coming around to bite him in the ass.

He blamed Jerry for everything.

"O-okay." He sighed, his feet shifting rapidly. He took in a deep breath. "We… We don't have them anymore. Someone else has them now."

The human's eyes twitched dangerously. " _Who?_ "

He gulped again. He didn't want to speak. He made a promise to all his friends that he wouldn't tell anyone where the human was until they could hand it over to the King himself.

But then again, they weren't the one who had a knife on his throat.

Taking another deep breath, he made a decision.

"O-okay. This is what happened..."

* * *

Frisk woke up quietly, not even the slightest breath on their lips as their eyes flicked open. They smiled. It appeared as though Chara was successful in keeping their promise. They were finally free from whatever prison that had kept them asleep.

They slowly pushed themselves up, sucking in a sharp breath to kick start their brain to formulate a plan on how they were going to reward their partner. A hug was an obvious choice, but the mischievous part of them said that that was too weak, woefully insufficient. A kiss was something a princess gave out rather than received, but the image of what Chara would look like after being kissed on the cheek was too hilarious for them to resist. And why stop there? Perhaps they could be even more outrageous and plant a chaste kiss on the lips. Chara would absolutely flip, perhaps even faint. Frisk stifled their giggle, their imagination running wild, so wild that it was actually making _them_ raised both hands to bury their burning face, mortified and hoping that Chara couldn't see or hear the dirty thoughts that were invading their mind.

And it was in the middle of this action that Frisk stopped dead in their track.

There had been a loud jingle as they'd moved their hands, and an odd weight around their wrists was stifling their movement.

_Chains?_

They swung their arm and felt the weight follow behind, steel links rattling against a hard floor. Surprised, they touched the ground, feeling the cold tile under them instead of a comfortable bed like they had expected. They looked up, staring into the darkness that no longer seemed like the interior of a comfortable bedroom. The air around them was cold, far too cold even for a Snowdin house. It was only now that they realised that even if Chara had rescued them, there wasn't any way that the monarch would be finding them a bed to sleep on.

They hadn't been rescued.

Something was very, _very_ wrong.

They stood up, frantically scrambling to their feet before they walked forward with their arms out, desperately hoping to grab onto something that could help them gain some sort of baring. However, not three steps forward, they felt a tug on both of their arms and their legs slipped under them from the inertia. They fell to the floor, crying out as they landed on their back.

Pouting at their sore butt, they sat up and tried moving their arms again. The chains linked to their arms became taut. From what they could see, they barely had two meters of allowed movement.

"Chara?" They called out for the first time, then for the second, then the third. It all came back with the same result: A brief echo, followed by a deafening silence.

Finally, they tried calling out in their mind, a surefire way for the two of them to communicate without interruption. But to their shock, the silence was in their mind too. They tried to feel for their partner, to gain support from the warmth of another presence linked to their soul. But they felt nothing. There was only a void where Chara should have been.

They whimpered, their eyes darting side to side in panic. They sniffled and curled up into a ball, frightened. So many questions flew by in their head, but it all came back with more silence, more darkness and the cold.

They were alone.

_LOAD. I need to LOAD_. They thought amidst their shallow, panicked breaths. They pressed their eyes shut, reached deep into their SOUL and concentrated on their power, their DETERMINATION.

Then, as their already dark vision wavered, as the air around them blurred like a picture underwater, Frisk let out a loud, gut wrenching scream.

Pain was everywhere. It exploded from their SOUL, threatening to rip it asunder from within. They fell to their side, their back arched as more screams tore out of them. Their body felt like it was on fire, their SOUL like it was being burned with acid. And amidst it all, their SAVE never loaded. They had tried, yes, they had found the file, chose 'LOAD' and then 'YES' when it asked if they were sure. It was just as they'd always done. Yet when the SAVE faded into darkness to load, there was only a phrase that came back to them, a phrase they had never seen before.

_ERROR: LOADING SAVE FILE._  
_Exception: ExternalInterrupt_  
_Script was terminated by an external command!_  
_SAVE file recovery failed. Shutting down._

What did that mean? They tried to piece together the words in their mind, but the sensation of their SOUL tearing apart still had them paralyzed, both in mind and body. They didn't understand what was happening to them.

"whoa there kid. what the hell did you just try to do?"

Frisk's eyes shot open, but then instantly winced shut again when they were suddenly assaulted by a cold, fluorescent light filling the room. "Wh… who's there?" They asked, blind.

There was a long, impressed whistle. "that's a lot of determination, kid. haven't seen a reading like this in this lab's whole history. no wonder my alarm went off. you surprised me, you know? i thought you escaped or something."

That voice. That deep, chuckling voice. "S.. Sans?"

"hey kid." Sans laughed. Frisk squint their eyes open and saw the skeleton standing by a large machine pointed directly at them. Quickly, they studied the narrow room and recognised it instantly as Sans' lab. "frisk, right? good to see you awake. you were pretty much a popsicle when i found you. you feeling alright?"

"Wh-what's going on? What am I doing here? What is this?" They waved their arm and the chains along with it. The chain themselves were linked to the cold tile wall behind them, giving them barely enough room to reach the dog bowl of food and water to their side.

"i think you know where you are." Sans chuckled, his voice devoid of humour. "and if you don't, then i have no reason to tell you either. let's just say that you're in a place where not many people will ever think to look for you, okay?"

Frisk shuffled uncomfortably. They did not like how Sans was looking at them right then. Those two cold, unfeeling eyes that was so different from the friend they knew.

Suddenly, the eyes flashed blue, and the computer chair behind him rolled over to him, allowing him to take a seat comfortably with only a simple hop.

"now, let _me_ ask you something." He began. "did you try to do something just now? this machine doesn't just pick up determination randomly you know? what did you do? how did you do it?"

Frisk did little to answer. Sans' usually relaxed gaze was now much too hard, much too… _fixed_ on them, like needles piercing through their skin. They felt like a lab frog, strapped onto a whiteboard, their stomach sliced open and gut out in full display.

They didn't trust what he would do with the information was going to be anything good.

They needed to leave. They had to get out before Sans did something horrible to them, as difficult as that was to believe from one of their best friends in the previous timeline. Shivering, Frisk closed their eyes again and tried to load their SAVE once more.

Then, like before, they began to scream.

"whoa." Sans quirked an eye socket, rolling his chair back to look at something about the large machine. "readings are off the chart… you can do this multiple times, huh? interesting."

Frisk clenched their teeth to numb down the torture inflicted on their SOUL. " _What_ … is _happening?!_ "

"oh, you don't know? have you never seen this before?" Sans patted the giant red machine next to him. "it's a determination extractor, minified, of course. the original is a lot bigger, and a lot more powerful too, but I can't exactly fit that one in this lab, you know? i had to make do." He rolled his chair back towards Frisk. "it's not strong enough to suck the DETERMINATION out of you by force, but if you try to use it to change your environment in any way, then shooop! it's gonna slurp it all up like a bowl of morning ketchup."

"But… w- _why_?" Frisk choked, their body spasming.

"uh, to stop you from going back in time, duh."

Frisk gave him a surprised look.

"what? you didn't think i'd find out about your time travelling powers?" He leaned forward on his chair. "or are you just pretending to be surprised? can't really tell when i know you could have seen a hundred different futures before coming to this one. makes you really hard to trust, you know what i mean?"

He chuckled but Frisk wasn't keen on joining in.

"heh. but look, whatever the situation, don't take it too hard. it's nothing personal. i just wanted to run some experiments on you. it's what us scientists do."

He paused.

"huh. actually, sorry. that's a lie. this _is_ kind of personal."

He suddenly hopped out of his seat and walked over to Frisk, not a single drop of mercy or kindness in his steps. Frisk shuffled back but Sans did not slow his pace, only stopping when he was close enough to crouch down in front of them.

"see, there's something really wrong with me these days. i'm not usually like this. i don't usually care when a human comes through our land. i don't care if one of them happens to be a DETERMINATION filled time traveller. and i really, _really_ don't care if one of them happens to be a really powerful magic user who just _happens_ to be the dead human princess of the monster kind."

Try as they might, Frisk couldn't help but flinch at the reveal.

"heh, yeah, surprising isn't it? my friend alphys found that out. real shocking stuff. not sure if i believe it. dead people don't come back to life normally, you know? it's _really_ unusual. both of you are."

Sans leaned in close, his cold grin wide and fixed like a fake caricature. Frisk whimpered and tried to shuffle back further, only for their back to be met with a cold tile wall.

"let me a-"

There was a ring. A loud ear piercing ring of a phone going off

Both Frisk and Sans froze at the sudden sound. Then, with a tired sigh, the skeleton stood up. He pulled out his ringing phone from his pocket and brought it up to his ear after a small swipe.

"yellow?"

" _Where are they, you son of a bitch!"_

Frisk jumped at the voice booming through the phone. "Chara?!"

" _Child?!"_

"whoa, there." Sans covered the phone's receiver, disregarding Chara's voice calling out for Frisk over and over. "kinda rude kid. this is a private phone call."

Frisk wanted to shout, to scream to Chara to help them. Their partner's voice calling out to them from the speaker was more than enough to make their heart pound with hope. Yet Sans' looming presence was preventing them from doing anything. If they told Chara where Sans' lab is now, will Sans move them to a different area? "Sans." They pled. "Sans, please, let me go. I-I didn't do anything! I'll volunteer for your experiment, I'll provide any samples or _whatever_! Please, just let me go!"

Sans looked at them for a moment, before tapping a button on the phone that seemed to silence Chara's spew of profanity at him. "yeah, you know, i guess it's kind of true that you didn't do anything here. and i can appreciate the offer to step up as my guinea pig. but let me just finish what i was saying before, before you start throwing yourself at me like that." He crouched down again. "see, the thing is, i just can't help but feel…. really angry whenever i look at you, kid. you and your guardian, princess, friend, whatever you wanna call her. i'm not usually like that with anyone, but you two… i don't know. i just really want to punch you both in the face whenever i see you. isn't that strange?" He sighed. "determination is one hell of a poison. you take a bit of it by accident and you can't get rid of it. you start seeing things differently. remembering things that will be, or get weird deja vu of things that never happens. you get what i'm saying?"

He sighed.

"okay, that's enough beating around the bush. I'm just gonna ask this straight." He looked at them straight in the eyes. "did you, or that friend of yours, _do_ something? something bad that's gonna make me really, really mad? because you look like a nice kid and i don't like being so mean to anyone, so for me to get so worked up… i'm guessing something must have happened. something bad. like, _really_ bad. would you know anything about that?"

With his question out on the table, the skeleton waited for an answer. But Frisk never spoke. They just stared at him warily, like they were now standing on top of a rope bridge, where any mistaken action could lead them to falling down to the far chasm below.

Ten seconds went by without an answer.

And _that_ , ironically, was answer enough for the skeleton.

"heh. whatever." He stood up with a shrug. "i guess what's important is that it's not gonna happen anymore, whatever it is that you or your friend will do. i'll make sure that you never even come close to doing it."

He turned around and started for the door, phone in hand, ready to pick up the call where he left off.

"Wait!"

He turned around.

"Y-you're just gonna leave me here?" Frisk asked, their breath hastening with their rising panic. They realised now that they were on Sans' bad side, but he was such a darling person and friend before, surely he wouldn't just leave them there in the cold? "Please, Sans… Please, don't do this. Please, let me go."

Sans stared at them for a bit, his pinprick gaze devoid of all emotions.

Then, he turned and walked over to his desk where he pulled out a key from one of the drawers. Checking the metal piece for a bit, he threw it at Frisk's direction where it landed just a meter away from their feet. Their face blooming into a grateful smile, Frisk swiftly crawled over to it and reached out with their chained hands.

Then, only a moment before contact, the key wrapped around a blue aura and got dragged back, further away from Frisk's reach.

Frowning, they tried to reach it again.

The key got moved further.

Their chains now taut, Frisk used their leg to step on the key and drag it back, but before even the tip of their shoe could tickle the metal tip, the key got flung away, just an inch away from the tip of their foot.

Try as they might, the key was now out of their reach, sitting so close, yet unreachable by a coin's width.

They looked up at Sans who gave them a cold stare.

"see ya."

With that, the skeleton turned around and walked out the door, leaving Frisk alone in the cold lab, staring after him in stunned shock.

The child looked at the key, at their chain, then back at the door where they hoped but knew in their guts Sans would not come back.

Then, with a loud clang, the lights turned off. And Frisk could see no more.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N: And that's it! Hope the lack of action didn't bore you too much. I felt like I rushed the Sans scene a bit, and I think there was a missed opportunity for a bit more character growth in the previous chapter as well. Ah, but a spilt milk is spilt milk. Hopefully you guys still enjoyed it!**
> 
> **Thank you in advance for reading! Leave a review/comment if you have the time, and I'll see you guys next time!**
> 
> **Up next: MEGALOVANIA**


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